Ambushed
by miss37
Summary: Mac Taylor and Don Flack go to Colorado to pick up a prisoner. When they are ambushed there and disappear, Jo and others from the team go to Colorado to find them, because they know Mac Taylor does not slack from his job.
1. Chapter 1

As he looked down from 33,000 feet, Mac Taylor could see some snow on the mountain tops, even though it was April, and springtime. He and Don Flack were on their way to a small town in Colorado called Fleming, which was in Boulder County. Mac had never been to this place, but a suspect they had been after had been captured there and they were going to pick him up, and the evidence against him for the crimes he had committed in Colorado as well. Mac did not particularly like flying but it was better than driving all the way over there from New York. Don was sleeping, as he was sitting in the middle seat. There was a man sitting on the other side of Don. Mac always got a little claustrophobic when he was in a plane and he either looked out the window or listened to music or looked at magazines. He was glad this was not a long flight.

Mac stuck his ear buds in his ears. He would just listen to some music because he was just a little bored sitting there looking out the window. He thought maybe he should just try and take a nap too and then maybe the plane would be landing by the time he woke up.

Their plane landed at 10AM. Don stretched and yawned as they walked off the plane. "I think that was the longest I've slept all year without being interrupted," he said.

"Well, you sure got your four hours worth," Mac replied. "Let's get a car and get over there to Fleming."

"Why did they have to catch him in a town that time forgot?"

"I don't think time forgot it…it's just small."

"You know how these small towns are…everybody knows everybody."

"Yeah, and they're always suspicious of someone they don't know so just try and tone it down while we're there."

"Me? What? You think I'll offend them?"

"Just try not to joke around too much, if you don't mind."

Don smiled as they were going to the carousel to get their bags. When they had those, they went to rent a car. "We should rent a sports car," Don said.

Mac looked at him. "We have to transport a prisoner," he pointed out. "We can't do that in a sports car."

"Can't we at least get something a little flashy?"

"Why?"

"I don't know. I get tired of gray and beige and black."

Mac rented a blue car and they headed for the town. "Well, at least it's not gray," Don said.

"Do you always have to complain?" Mac asked.

"No, but we could have gotten a red car."

"They didn't have a red car."

"Oh right."

"I just hope we can get this guy back to New York without any incidents."

"That shouldn't be a problem. He'll be cuffed the whole way."

"I still just don't like taking a prisoner on a plane with other people."

"We'll put him in the middle. That way if he moves either way, one of us can shove him back in place."

Mac looked out the window at the green scenery. Although it was still cool here in the mountains, everything was still green for spring. He liked spring except for the pollen that sometimes got his sinuses into an uproar. He had not gotten any allergies yet, but he was sure something would come up before it was over.

Mac took the file out about the guy they were going after. It would take them two days because the extradition papers had to be filled out and approved by a judge. He had been through this process before and it was a slow process and had to be done right.

As they arrived in Fleming, it was even smaller than Mac had expected. However, the sheriff in this county had an office there, and actually, he had been told that the sheriff lived there, and owned a great deal of land around that town. Mac always did research about these cases and people involved when he was dealing with people like this and knew nothing about them. He liked to know something before he got to a place. He did not have to go traveling very often but one never knew what would come up.

They found the sheriff's office there in the town and went inside. It looked like something out of the Andy Griffith show, with just a desk and jail cells although there were doors separating the office from the cells. There was a deputy sitting at a desk there in the office. He had blond hair and looked like he worked out plenty and it showed through his well-fitting uniform. "Morning," he said.

"Morning," Mac replied. "I'm Detective Mac Taylor from New York."

"Oh, you're the one who came to get that prisoner."

"Yes. I have the papers here for his extradition."

The deputy came over to the counter and took the papers from Mac. "The sheriff should be in soon," he said. "You fellas can wait or you can get yourselves a room at the hotel down there."

Mac nodded. "How long before the sheriff will be here?" he asked. "He knew we were coming. Why isn't he here?"

The deputy, whose name on the tag was Talmadge, frowned. "The sheriff is a busy man," he declared. "You may not think we do anything over here but we do. It seems that we caught your guy when you couldn't keep him in your big city."

Don just looked at Mac wondering what he would say to that. Mac had told him not to offend people here and now he was ruffling feathers. Mac frowned at Talmadge. "Okay," he said. "And I never said you don't do anything. I just think it's rather rude to be expecting someone at your office and then not bother to be present when they arrive."

"Like I said, he's a busy man, so you can either wait or do whatever."

"We'll go and check into the hotel," Mac said. "We'll be back in an hour."

Don followed Mac outside. "I thought we weren't going to ruffle any feathers over here," Don said.

Mac looked at him as they were getting into the car. "Give me the keys," he said. "I'm driving."

Don gave him the keys and they got into the car. Mac drove over to the hotel and they checked into two rooms. Mac put his bag on the bed and sat down. He sighed as he thought that bed was awful hard. Then again, he could not expect it to be like his own bed. He changed into some jeans and a blue and white checkered shirt. He was not tired so he went outside and went over to Don's room. "You ready to eat?" Mac asked.

"Yeah, sure," Don said.

They went over to a small restaurant there called The Barbeque Grill. Mac thought it looked like it was the only restaurant in town, but of course, they had not seen the whole place. They walked in and Mac thought it smelled like black pepper in there. "They must use a lot of pepper on stuff," he remarked. He thought that smell would make him sneeze.

"It sure smells like pepper," Don said.

They walked up to the counter and a woman came over to them. "Howdy, what can I get for you?" she asked. "Or would you like to sit and look at a menu?"

"I think I'd like a menu," Mac said. "This is our first time here."

"Just have a seat, Honey, and I'll bring you one."

Mac and Don went to a table and sat down. "Honey," Don said, mocking the waitress.

Mac shook his head. "She'll probably call you that too," Mac replied.

Don snickered at that and then the waitress brought them both a menu. "What would you boys like to drink?" she asked.

Mac considered that a moment. "I think I'll just have a soda," he said.

"You in town for long?"

"No. We're just here on business."

"In Fleming? What kind of business?"

Mac smiled slightly. He knew people in small towns liked to know everything. "We're detectives from New York," he said. "We're here for a prisoner."

"Oh, I heard about that." The waitress smiled. "So you're from New York. Wow. That's a big city, isn't it?"

Mac nodded. "It is."

"My name's Katy."

"Mac."

Katy looked at Don. "What will you have to drink, Sugar?" she asked.

"I'll have a soda too."

They looked at the menu while Katy went to get their drinks. Mac smiled and chuckled. "Sugar," he said.

"Don't tease me, _Honey._ I wonder what's good," Don said.

Mac almost laughed. "Maybe it all is," he replied. "Why don't you ask Katy when she comes back?"

Mac looked at the local newspaper while they waited for their food. It was definitely a small paper but he thought he could read the whole thing while he was sitting there. He had been in small towns before but he thought this one was the smallest.

When they got their food, they found that it was very good. "You think that guy will give us any trouble on the way back to New York?" Don asked.

"He might try," Mac replied. "But if he does, we're going to give him some trouble."

"What's that sheriff's name?"

"Bronson." Mac looked at his watch. "Let's hurry and get done here so we can get back to that sheriff's office and get this extradition started."

"I'm for that. I hope we can get on our way back to New York tomorrow."

"I don't know. It's according to how fast their process works here."

"Well, it shouldn't take long since this is a small place."

"You might be surprised. The sheriff was too busy to meet with us when we got here."

Don frowned. "You're right. What could be so important that he couldn't even meet with us?"

"Oh I don't know. Maybe he had to go after a moonshiner."

Don tried not to laugh at that. "Really?"

Mac shook his head. "I don't know. Doesn't look like they would go after someone for that in this state."

When they were done eating, Mac and Don went back to the sheriff's office. The deputy was still there, but there was another man there who was sitting behind the sheriff's desk with his booted feet propped on the desk. "We're here to see the sheriff," Mac said.

"I'm the sheriff," the man behind the desk said without getting up. "Who might you be?"

"I'm Detective Mac Taylor."

"Oh. That detective from New York."

"I brought an extradition request."

"Where's your badge? I like to see a badge when I'm talking to somebody, especially when they're not wearing a uniform."

Don just looked at Mac. He thought that guy did not know who he was talking to. Mac took his badge off his belt. "That good enough for you?" he asked.

The sheriff stood up, and he was a tall man, and he spoke with a deep voice. He walked over to the counter and looked at Mac's badge. "You know that badge doesn't mean anything here," he said.

"It means something when it comes to that prisoner," Mac replied. "Now, I'm here to file an extradition request and I want to see the prisoner."

"He's working."

"Working?"

"Yeah. They get to do a day of work on the work farm."

Mac frowned. "Work farm? For who?"

"Me of course."

"And just how long will it take to get him extradited?"

"At least till tomorrow. You must know how that process works."

"You wouldn't be stalling, would you?" Mac asked.

The sheriff removed his shades and stared at Mac with hard, blue eyes. "I don't like your tone," he said.

"Well, I haven't liked anything since I've been here."

They glared at each other. Mac knew a crooked lawman when he saw one. He figured this sheriff ran this whole town the way he wanted it. "Can I see the prisoner?" he asked. "Where is he?"

"I told you he's out on the work farm."

"Well, why don't we just take a drive out there…unless you just don't want me to see it?"

Mac wouldn't have thought it possible, but the sheriff's frown deepened even more. "Sure," he said. "We can drive out there. You can even bring your…deputy with you."

"He's not a deputy," Mac said. "This is Detective Don Flack."

"They had to send two detectives out here for one prisoner?"

"We take murder very seriously."

The sheriff put his shades back on and then looked at his deputy. "Come on, Brett, let's take them out to the work farm," he said.

"Yes, sir," Brett Talmadge said.

Mac thought that guy sounded awfully eager. He looked at Don with one of his warning looks. He did not have to say a word because Don knew what it meant. "You fellas have to leave all weapons here," Talmadge said. "Can't take them out to the farm."

Mac stared at him a moment. "Why?" he asked.

"That should be obvious. We have prisoners working out there and if one of them got loose and…"

"They would have a hard time getting my weapon but I'll leave it in the car when we get there."

Mac and Don went outside. "What do you think about this, Mac?" Don said just above a whisper. "They send a prisoner out to a work farm who is supposed to be picked up today or tomorrow?"

Mac rubbed his chin a moment. "I don't know, Don, but I don't think this is the way an extradition is supposed to be…even in a small town."

"You think something happened to that prisoner?"

"I think there's more going on here than we know."

Soon, the sheriff and the deputy came out. "Why don't you just ride with us?" Sheriff Bronson asked.

"We'd just as soon ride in our own car," Mac replied.

"Just try and keep up then."

Mac and Don got into their car and followed the sheriff. "Mac, do you get the feeling we're going out in the middle of nowhere?" Don asked.

"Yes, I do," Mac said. "But I want to see that prisoner."

They followed them out far from the town, and into the mountains where they finally came to a fenced in area with small, wooden buildings. Don thought this looked like something out of an old movie. They pulled up to one of the buildings and got out. Mac was wearing his shades now as the sun was beating down. He looked around the place and could see that the prisoners were outside right now eating.

Suddenly, one of the prisoners came running over to the fence. "Detective Taylor!" he said. "Detective Taylor!"

"Quiet!" Sheriff Bronson yelled.

Mac took his shades off and looked at the prisoner. "That's Ian Hubbard, isn't it?" he asked. He walked over to the fence, noticing how angry the sheriff looked. "Ian Hubbard?"

"Detective Taylor, get me out of here," Hubbard said. "I'll confess to everything. I want you to take me back to New York."

"Really?"

"Yes. That guy's…"

Hubbard trailed off as the sheriff walked over there. Mac looked at him. "What are you doing to these prisoners?" he asked. "This guy looks like he's been beat up."

"Well, when they get out of line, they get a little discipline," Bronson said.

"I can imagine."

Bronson walked closer to Mac and they would have been nose to nose if he had not been taller than Mac. "Are you accusing me of something, Taylor?" Bronson asked.

Mac glared at him. "I sure am," he replied.

Suddenly, Mac saw movement behind him, and then something hard struck him. All in the same instance, he heard Don yell, "Mac!"

Mac hit the ground on his hands and knees. Don started to draw his weapon but then there was a .357 Magnum pointed right between his eyes. He froze in place. "You move, and it'll be your last," Sheriff Bronson said.

Mac shook his head. He was addled, but he was not unconscious. The deputy took Don's weapon and then searched him for any others that he was hiding. Don stayed still, knowing the effect that a .357 Magnum would have on his head, and he would never hear the sound. He was handcuffed, and then Talmadge got Mac up to his feet, although Mac weaved on his feet. He glared at the sheriff. "You won't get away with this," he said. "I don't care if you do rule this place over here."

"You're in no position to make threats, and I need some more workers in my mine."

Mac's vision blurred slightly and he thought he would pass out. "Bring him on," Bronson said.

Talmadge picked Mac up over his shoulder and they went to one of the brown buildings, taking Don along too. He dumped Mac on a cot in the room, and then searched him for any weapons he had. He found Mac's ankle pistol, and his Marine knife. Bronson stared at the knife a moment. "I think this one might be a problem," he said.

"Why?" Talmadge asked.

"He's a Marine."

They looked at Mac, who was lying on the cot. Don just stared at them. "You can't keep him here," he said. "He'll fight you."

"Oh, and what about you?" Bronson asked.

"I'll help him."

Bronson walked up close to Don being even a little taller than Don. "I think I'll take some of that rebellion out of you, Boy," he said.

Don tried not to show any sort of fear, but he knew this guy would be brutal, and he was in no hurry to be beat up. "I can smell fear," Bronson said with a smirk.

Don did not say a word, but Talmadge took the cuffs off his wrists and they left Mac and him alone. Don went over to Mac and knelt beside the cot. "Mac, come on and wake up," Don said. He patted Mac's face and shook him. "Mac!"

Mac moved his hand slightly and turned his head, but did not open his eyes. "Mac." Don lifted Mac up to sitting and sat down on the cot to hold him up. "Come on, Mac." He patted Mac's face again and shook him. "Mac, wake up." Don was afraid Mac might sleep a long time if he let him keep sleeping after being hit on the head like that.

Mac grunted and moved his head slightly. "That's it," Don said. "Come on and wake up." He shook Mac again. "Mac, we're in real trouble here. You have to wake up." Don let Mac's head lean back against his shoulder. He sighed as he realized he was not getting anywhere with this. "Mac, we have no way of getting out of here. That Bronson is a brutal animal." Don patted Mac's face again. "Come on, Mac. If you don't wake up, they might strip search you." He waited to see if that would get a reaction but Mac did not move. "They found your Marine knife. He took it. Doesn't that make you mad? He thinks he's gonna hold us here and make us work in his mine. I don't know the first thing about working a mine. Do you?" Don stared at Mac but he did not move. "We messed up, Mac." Don just laid him back down on the cot and got up. He looked out the window and could see Bronson and Talmadge dragging Ian Hubbard from the fenced-in area.

Don knew what was going on here now, but he could do nothing about it, and Mac was in no condition to do anything either. He figured that was why they wanted to incapacitate Mac. Don frowned. He could be just as dangerous to their little operation if he could get out of this place. But he knew he could not fight like Mac Taylor, and that Bronson knew it too. Don thought maybe if he got out of this mess he would start taking some sort of martial arts. But for now, he was stuck in this place…and Mac was unconscious.


	2. Chapter 2

When Mac woke up, he was wondering where he was for a moment and then he remembered. He sat up and then his head pounded. He could feel right where he had been hit on the head. Don came over to him. "Mac, you alright?" he asked.

Mac looked at him a moment, and then sighed as he remembered what had happened. "How long have I been out?" he asked.

"A couple of hours."

Mac rubbed the back of his head. "What all has happened since then?"

"Well, I saw them drag Ian Hubbard out of that fence out there and…I don't know where they took him."

Mac frowned. "Why would they take him off somewhere? We've already seen him."

"Mac, I don't think we'll ever make any sense out of this."

"Oh, I can make some sense out of it. We've stepped into his territory, and he doesn't like it. He was afraid we would break up his little party out here." Mac paused a moment. "I just wonder why they even reported that he had been found."

"Maybe they thought they would get some sort of recognition for catching him and maybe they didn't think we would catch on to their plot over here."

"Me and my big mouth."

"You can't blame yourself."

Mac stood up and stretched a little. He thought that bonk on the head made him feel stiff all over. "Why did they want to ambush us like that?" he wondered out loud. "Do they really think they can get away with this? Don't they know people will be looking for us?"

"I don't think they intend to let them find us, Mac," Don said.

Mac walked around a little trying to stop feeling stiff. "We're really in trouble, Don."

Don rubbed his face as he looked out the barred window. "There has to be a way to get away from here," he said.

"We'll find it. There's no way I'm going to let this puffed up marshmallow keep me here till I fall over dead."

Don thought Mac would be hard to break, and he was not sure that sheriff would be successful no matter how long he tried to keep Mac there. Don wished he had some confidence in himself. He had been a cop a long time, but he did not like this situation. He thought he would just do what they told him to do rather than trying to resist, and then take his chance when it came.

At around Noon, they heard someone unlocking the door. Mac just sat on his cot and waited to see who was coming in. Talmadge came in and he was carrying uniforms for them: blue shirts and dark blue pants, and work boots. "Put these on," he said.

Mac shoved the clothes at him and shoved him backward slightly. "We're not prisoners!" he said. "And I won't be treated like one!"

Talmadge drew his weapon, and then another guard came in the door with a rifle. "You'll do what you're told or you'll face the consequences," Talmadge said. "Now you better be dressed and ready when we come for you."

Mac glared at him. "You better let us out of here now because you're not going to get away with this."

Talmadge walked over to Mac and pointed his gun against Mac's chest. "Get dressed," he said. He could see there was no fear in Mac's eyes. "You'll be afraid before it's over."

"People are going to be looking for us," Mac said. "You can't even hope to get away with keeping us here."

"Trust me, you won't be here, and no one will ever know you were here."

"That's what you think."

Talmadge could see that he was not going to intimidate Mac. "Get dressed." He walked out of the cabin.

Don looked at Mac. "Don't you think we should go ahead and change?" Don asked as he picked up the clothes from the floor.

Mac looked at Don as though he had forgotten that he was there. "Go ahead," he said.

"You mean you're not going to change?"

"I won't be treated like a prisoner."

"Mac, there's no telling what they'll do to you if you don't cooperate. We can find a way out later."

Mac knew Don was worried about getting injured. "I told you to go ahead and change," he said.

Don was not sure what he should do. He did not want to be beat up, and he did not want to betray Mac. "What if they just shoot you?" Don asked.

Mac blew out a loud breath. "I don't think they want to kill me," he said. "They want us to work for them. They must be pretty desperate to go to all this trouble to get us like that."

"I wonder how many they have in that mine."

"I don't know, but since there were only five in there besides Hubbard, they may not have all that many, or maybe there are several."

"Mac, just put on the clothes," Don said as he laid Mac's on his cot. "I think we ought to just cooperate for now."

"I'm not one to be cooperative, Don. Especially when I am being forced into something."

"But if we get injured, we're not going to be able to help ourselves."

"I told you to go ahead and change, Don. It's not going to bother me, but I'm going to be the most stubborn person they ever had around here."

Don was not sure what Mac was going to accomplish by that but he changed into the clothes that Talmadge had brought. "Mac…"

Just then, they heard someone coming in the door again. Talmadge was there again, but this time, the sheriff was there. "I told you he wasn't going to cooperate," Talmadge said.

Bronson just stared at Mac a moment. "You think you're going to get away, Taylor?" he asked. "You think you can just refuse to do what you're told?"

"I'm not your prisoner!" Mac declared.

Don swallowed hard as he could see the rage on Bronson's face, but he could also see that Mac was not one bit afraid. He thought this was going to be a brutal fight if they tied up. Then Bronson smiled a cold smile. "You would enjoy a fight, wouldn't you?" he asked. "You're just itching for it."

"I like to take down criminals," Mac replied.

"Well, I'm going to teach you what happens when you don't cooperate. See, I like to go for what would hurt you the most, and I don't think a fight with you would convince you to cooperate."

Mac frowned, wondering what he meant by that. Bronson and Talmadge turned to Don, and Mac realized what they were about to do. "Stop!" Mac said. "He doesn't have anything to do with my cooperation."

Bronson smiled. "I think you care more about what happens to him than you do about what happens to yourself," he said.

Don did not think he had ever seen Mac's face so red, and he figured his was white. He had never dreamed that it would turn out like this. Bronson grabbed Don by the arm and led him over to the door. "You got five minutes, Taylor," he said. "If you're not ready by then, your friend is going to pay the consequences for you."

Mac was so angry, he thought he would burst as they closed that door. He had no choice but to put on the clothes now. He changed and soon, they came back into the cabin to get him. Mac went along willingly because he did not want anything to happen to Don on his account. They were put into a small bus along with a few others, and then they were off to somewhere.

Mac frowned as they pulled away. Don looked at him. "I'm sorry, Mac," he said.

"For what?" Mac asked.

"I shouldn't have cooperated either."

"Why? So we could both get beat up?"

"Maybe we'll get a chance to get out of here."

"You two must be those detectives from New York," someone said.

Mac looked across at the one who was talking. He was a big man with blond hair, and green eyes. Mac could tell he was tall and he looked like he had been working in the sun and with tools. He had a beard and looked like he did not take baths very often. As a matter of fact, Mac thought it did not smell like anyone in that truck took baths very often.

"What if we are?" Mac asked.

"I guess you'll find out what it's like on the other side of the bars," the man said.

"People who get in jail choose to commit a crime. No one is forcing them to."

The man frowned at Mac. "You're one of those cops who doesn't have any sympathy for anyone, aren't you?" he asked.

"No."

"Really? Well, I don't think anyone is going to have any sympathy for you in that hole we're going to either, so I would watch myself."

"Maybe you should watch yourself and be careful who you threaten."

"Threaten? Why do you think I'm threatening you?"

"Sounds like a threat."

"Maybe it was. You think you're so tough?"

Mac frowned and just ignored that question. Don wished they could get by for just a while without getting into an argument or fight. He thought Mac stuck out like a sore thumb no matter where he went. He hoped they could avoid any bad situations until they could figure out how to get out of this mess.

Mac looked out the window. He did not like giving in to situations. That was not how he was put together or how he worked. He was a Marine, and it was his instinct to fight back, but he supposed right now he would have to wait and see his opportunity…but there was one thing for sure, he was going to bring that crooked sheriff down.

The bus soon arrived at the mine. Mac could see the opening in the side of the mountain, and it looked like it went downward. He frowned. He did not like the idea of being in there. He was definitely not cut out to be a miner because he was a little claustrophobic. He had to admire anyone who could go down in the earth for hours at a time and not be bothered by it.

Before they were taken off the bus, they were fixed with shackles on their ankles. Don looked at Mac feeling very helpless but Mac looked just as defiant as ever. Bronson came out there, and Mac glared at him as he made his speech of warning to everyone, telling them what their consequences would be if they tried to escape or if they broke the rules. Bronson walked up in front of Mac and grinned triumphantly at him while Mac just glared at him not one bit intimidated. "I think we're gonna have a lot of fun together," Bronson said.

"If you call it fun," Mac replied.

Don could see the anger on Bronson's face. "I'm gonna break you, Taylor," Bronson declared.

"You can try," Mac said.

They stared at each other a moment, and Don thought they were going to tie up right there, but Bronson yelled, "Alright, move 'em in there!" He was yelling right in Mac's face at the time, but Mac did not even blink.

It was not easy to walk with those shackles on their ankles, but it was even more difficult for Mac, since Bronson shoved him. "Just keep on walking," Don whispered. He knew Mac was boiling mad, but they both knew it would do no good to go into a confrontation.

They were herded into the mine shaft with the other prisoners. Mac could hardly believe someone could get away with this even if it was a small town. He wondered what all these people were in here for. He would just find out while he was working. He had a feeling that some of them were not criminals at all but just fit the bill when Bronson needed someone to work for him.

They were all given tools, and Mac stared at the ballpeen rock hammer he was given to break rocks with. He glared at Bronson who just smiled his smirky grin at him. Don was working in a totally different area than Mac, so they could not talk about anything. However, Mac knew if he decided to move, Don would fall in because they knew each other, and Don would figure out what to do very quickly.

Mac wanted to do anything but do what he was told, but he knew it would do them no good so he went over to the pile of rocks he was supposed to break up. He blew out a breath as he swung his hammer at the rock. The shock that went up his arms was like a wave of almost pain that went up the back of his arms. He knew this was not going to be fun.

By the time they were told to get outside to eat lunch, Mac had blisters on his hands. Almost all of them had popped open and his hands were sore. He knew they would get stiff after he stopped working. They were herded outside to eat. Mac was surprised when he saw that there was a food bar set up in one of the buildings where they would walk through with trays and get their food as the server put it on the tray. They all got in line, and Mac noticed that the server was Katy from the restaurant they had gone to in the town.

Don was in line behind Mac. "You see what I see?" Don said quietly.

"Yes," Mac replied.

Mac was glad he was almost at the back of the line. As he neared the bar, he got a tray, and then he saw Bronson's car coming into the yard outside. He wanted to get up there and say something to Katy before Bronson came in. When he got up there, he just looked at Katy a moment. "You know we're not prisoners," Mac said quietly as he was getting a roll.

"How did you get in here?" Katy asked as she dipped his plate.

"I think you know. You have to tell someone we're here. You know who I am, and who to get in touch with."

"They'll kill me."

"By the time they realize something is going on, it will be too late."

"You don't know Bronson."

"Help us, Katy."

Mac walked away with his tray just as Bronson was coming in the door. He took off his shades as he saw Mac walking toward a table. Mac sat down and Bronson came over there and leaned over him. "So, how did you like your morning of work, Taylor?" he asked. "Probably the first real work you ever did."

Mac glared at him. "You don't know what work is."

"How do you like the food?" Bronson looked at Mac's tray. "Looks like it's missing something." He pretended to think. "Oh yeah, I know what it is." He spit in Mac's tray.

Don saw what was going on as he was coming that way. He hoped Mac would not let that guy push him into a fight but he could see the fury on Mac's face. Everyone else seemed to be interested in what was going to happen too.

Bronson grinned his challenging smile at Mac. "Don't you think that makes it better?" he asked.

Mac did not say a word because he knew if he got started, he might not stop until he was finished with the whole bunch. Don was not sure what to do but the whole place had gotten very quiet.

Suddenly, Mac shoved his tray off in the floor and glared at Bronson. "You're gonna clean that up," Bronson said.

"Who's gonna make me?" Mac asked.

"I knew we were gonna clash, Taylor, but I didn't think it would be this soon."

"Why don't you take these shackles off me if you want a fight? Or are you just a big coward?"

Don swallowed hard. He knew Mac was just asking for it, but he also knew that if Bronson went along with that, Mac would give him a fight he would not forget. Don sat down at one of the other tables to wait and see what would happen. He was not sure what he should do if Mac did get into a fight.

Everything was silent, and it seemed extremely warm in that place as Mac and Bronson stared at each other. It seemed that they stared at each other a long time, but it was only a few seconds before Bronson jerked Mac up from the table. However, he did not have control for long, because Mac shoved his hands off him and then punched Bronson before he could move. Bronson did not fall however, and he knew Mac's weakness in those shackles. He kicked Mac's legs out from under him, and Mac could do nothing but fall because his feet were hooked together.

Suddenly, the whole place exploded in cheering and yelling. Don stood up and could see Mac, who looked right at him. Don knew what that meant. He looked around at everyone and they were all interested in the fight. He backed up toward the back of the building where there was another door. He turned the knob slowly and found that it was not locked. He looked around to make sure no one was seeing him, and Katy was looking right at him. He went on out the door and looked around him to see which way he should go. The place was surrounded by a fence, and Don was wondering how he could get over it with those shackles on his ankles but he had to try. He just hoped Mac would not get killed trying to help him get out of there.

Don moved away from the building, and he could hear people on the other side of the building. He was sure the guards would go in there to see what was going on. He could not help but worry about Mac, because he knew he had no way out. Don moved faster as he got over to the fence. He did not think the fence was electrified, but he was not sure. He spit at the fence and nothing happened, so he supposed it was not electrified. He would have to climb over using mostly just his hands so he got started. He could still hear the faint noise of the situation going on in the mess hall. "I'll be back, Mac," he whispered.

Don thought it was one of the most difficult climbs he had ever made, but he got over the fence. There were some trees and bushes out there and he hurried to get out among them so he would not be visible if anyone came out of that building. They were in a very mountainous area, and when he got a few feet, he found that there was a cliff that had a drop of about ten feet, and then there was another slanting descent. Don leaned back against the rock and looked down there. He needed those shackles off but there was no way to get them off. He thought if he could hang off the side of this cliff, he would be able to drop the rest of the way.

Mac was struggling with Bronson, hoping that Don was taking some sort of action. Bronson hit him so hard, Mac thought he might have loosened one of his teeth. He had known Bronson was tough but he was not afraid of that. He just wished his feet were not shackled together. It made his struggle even more difficult, and as they got into the fight, suddenly, they were surrounded by cheering and yelling prisoners. Mac thought if they decided to attack that sheriff, he would not be able to stop them from killing him. He was not sure this was such a good idea but if Don got out, it would maybe turn out right.

Mac was finally able to roll away from Bronson and get to his feet with some difficulty. Bronson got up glaring at Mac with pure hatred. He tackled Mac and they were on the floor again. Mac thought that lick knocked the breath completely out of him. He certainly felt the pain of it but he did not have time to think about that. Bronson shoved Mac's head down on the floor, but Mac rammed the heel of his hand into Bronson's nose. Blood exploded from his nose, and then Mac backhanded him with his right hand, knocking Bronson off him slightly. However, Mac could not get up quickly because of the chain, but he was in a crouch when Bronson came at him again. Mac met him with a punch to the gut, but Bronson hit Mac in the side of the head with his fist, and then he kneed him in the groin.

Then suddenly, there was automatic gun fire. Mac was stunned for a moment, and Bronson punched him hard in the face. Mac tried not to fall but he could not keep from it because of that chain. Then the guards were around him with guns pointing at him. Mac just lay there still steaming mad and wishing he could get his feet out of that chain. He was in pain but he had a feeling that this was only the beginning.

"Get him and bring him outside," Bronson growled as he wiped blood off his face.

The guards got Mac up, and he glared at Bronson. "So you are a coward," Mac said.

Bronson backhanded Mac across the face hard enough to bust his lips. "I don't have to fight you," he said.

"You're just lucky I'm not free."

Mac knew he was blowing Bronson's stack but he did not care. He wanted to keep his attention long enough for Don to get away from there. They took Mac outside as the other prisoners were herded back to the mine. Mac dreaded whatever they had in store for him because he knew it would not be pleasant.

As Don was getting ready to drop off that cliff, he thought he heard gunfire. He hoped Mac was okay. He dropped from the cliff and landed on his feet but he fell and almost slid off the edge of that cliff, but it was not really a cliff but more like an incline. He stopped his slide before he went on down. He looked down the slope. It would be difficult, if not impossible, to get down that with his feet shackled, but he was going to try. He certainly was not going to let Mac down after he was going through no telling what.


	3. Chapter 3

Bronson and two of his helpers took Mac out to the fenced-in area and went into that area where there was a structure set up that looked like a gallows but there was no noose there. Bronson held his gun to Mac's head while one of the guards unshackled his feet. Mac glared at him. "You must be really afraid of me to need to go to all this trouble," Mac said.

"I'm not afraid of you, Taylor," Bronson replied.

"You can't handle me on your own."

When his feet were unshackled, Bronson nodded to the guards and they took Mac's shirt off and tied him to the structure. Bronson walked up in front of Mac. "We'll see just how tough you are," he said.

"Well, I guess we already know what a coward you are."

Bronson frowned. "You've got a big mouth."

"I know, but somehow I can't help it."

"I'm gonna see if I can help it."

Mac watched as Bronson picked up a whip that was hanging on a nail. "I'm going to show you what we do to prisoners who don't cooperate," he said.

Mac knew what was coming but he was determined that he would not yell or scream. He would try not to even grimace. He watched as Bronson uncoiled the whip. "You know, I'm really good with one of these," Bronson bragged.

"I guess you get plenty of practice being a crooked cop."

"Enough talk. It's time for action."

Mac braced himself for the whip lash that was coming, but then another guard came running out there. "Sheriff!" he yelled.

Bronson looked around. "Can't you see I'm busy?" he asked.

"Sheriff, there's a prisoner missing."

Mac swallowed hard as he knew who was missing. Bronson looked at him with an evil look. "Who's missing?" he asked without taking his eyes off Mac.

Mac just glared at him. "It's that guy that came with him," the guard answered.

Bronson walked up close to Mac. "Well, well, well," he said. "Looks like we get to go huntin'…but I'm going to finish with you first." Bronson looked at the guards. "Get some men together and tell 'em we're going huntin'."

Mac hoped Don was making some progress but he knew his ankles were still shackled. Bronson looked at Mac again. "So, your little charade had a purpose," he said.

"What charade?" Mac asked. "You started it."

"How did you plan that with your subordinate?"

"I didn't plan anything."

Bronson backed up and got his whip ready. Mac braced himself and glared at Bronson as he heard the crack of that whip and felt the sting. He gritted his teeth to keep from grunting. Then Bronson recoiled the whip. Mac almost gasped. He felt blood run out of his side and back. Bronson smiled that smug smile at him and then Mac felt the whip again.

By the time Bronson was done, Mac was not sure he could stand up anymore without the ropes holding him but he was doing his best to look defiant. Bronson walked over to him. "You don't look so tough now," he said.

Mac did not say anything. He thought his voice might crack. "Get him down," Bronson said. "We're taking him with us."

They got Mac off the ropes, and he forced himself not to stumble. Then they put his shirt back on him. Mac tried not to grunt as it felt like that shirt was trying to go through his wounds. They got him around to a car and shoved him in. Mac almost grunted out loud when he landed on the seat. Then they made him sit up in the middle. He knew they were just trying to cause him pain. He leaned his head back on the seat as he felt those raw sores, now being pressed up against the seat and his shirt.

Bronson was in the driver's seat. He looked back at Mac. "Feeling alright?" he asked.

Mac did not say anything. He was wondering what Bronson was planning to do as they pulled out of that prison yard. Instead of going out to the main road, Bronson went around toward the back onto a dirt road that was very hilly and rough. They soon stopped and got out, and got Mac out of the car. "Now, we're going to see how far your friend has gone, and how far he will go," Bronson said.

Mac scowled at that. He was not sure what they were about to do…

Don had made it down that slope, and he was trying to make his way across the rocky terrain. He knew he had not gone even a mile yet because of the way he was having to walk with the shackles on but he was going as fast as he could, and it was exhausting. He wondered if there was any civilization out here at all, and he wondered if he was even going in the right direction.

As Don was stopped to rest a moment, he heard something…

"Don Flack! I know you can hear me because you couldn't have gotten that far!" Bronson yelled into a megaphone.

Don froze as he wondered how far that guy was from him. He could hear sound bouncing and echoing.

"You either come back here or you're going to hear one shot!" Bronson said. "Then you're going to know that your friend here is dead!"

Mac looked up at Bronson as they had him down on his knees. Bronson aimed his .357 Magnum at Mac's head. "I'm not going to keep standing here, Flack!" he yelled.

Don could feel sweat popping out all over him. He knew Mac would not want him to give up but if he did not give up and they killed Mac, he would never forgive himself. "I'm going to count to ten!" Bronson yelled.

"You keep going, Don!" Mac yelled as loudly as he could. "That's an order!"

Bronson began to count backward from ten. Don felt like he was caught between a rock and a hard place. If he kept going, Bronson would probably do just what he said he would and kill Mac, but if he gave up, Mac would be mad at him forever…maybe.

"Six!" Bronson yelled.

Mac closed his eyes and said a silent prayer. "Five!" Bronson yelled.

"What if he can't even hear you?" Mac asked.

"You getting' scared, Taylor? You afraid your buddy isn't going to value your life?"

"No."

Bronson frowned at the certainty in Mac's voice. "Four!" he yelled.

Don was still trying to decide what to do. He thought there might be the slightest chance that Bronson might not shoot Mac, but he did not think there was very much of a chance. "Three!"

Don stepped out from behind the rocks he was hiding behind. "Stop!" he yelled.

Mac looked up and frowned as he saw Don. "I'm right here!" Don said. He could see the anger on Mac's face even from that distance but he was not about to stand out there and let them kill Mac.

Two of the guards went out and got Don treating him roughly as they brought him back to the car. Mac did not even look at him as they shoved them back into the car. Mac looked out the other window as they were on their way back to their prison. Don sighed as he knew Mac was angry at him. "I didn't have a choice, Mac," he whispered.

Mac did not say anything. He just kept looking out the window. He did not think Bronson would have really shot him. He had no way of knowing whether Don could hear him out there or not. Why could Don not have thought about that? Mac knew exactly why Don could not stand there and pretend he did not hear him. He could not have done that either, and he knew he should not be giving Don the cold shoulder about it. He wanted to have a good argument with him about it though.

Don looked at Mac and he could see some blood stains on his shirt. "What happened to you?" Don asked.

Mac did not answer. He thought it did not matter now. It had been a failure anyway. They were on their way back to that prison now and there was no telling what they would do to them now because they had tried to escape…or at least, Don had. Mac sighed. There was nothing he could do about it now.

The Commissioner walked into the crime lab in New York. He had a file in his hands and he had some questions that he wanted answered. Of course, he knew Mac Taylor was not there, but he was looking for the second in command.

Danny and Lindsay Messer were in the lab. "Uh oh," Danny said. "The big guns are here."

"I wonder what he is doing up here," Lindsay replied.

"I wouldn't know because I have never actually seen him in the lab but one time."

"Must be something big if he's here."

"I wonder why Sinclair isn't with him."

Jo Danville saw the Commissioner coming toward her office and she had the instinct to try and straighten up some stuff but she had no time for that. She stood up from her desk and greeted the Commissioner at the door of her office. "Good afternoon, Commissioner," she said.

"Afternoon," Commissioner Reagan replied smiling with his Chevron mustache.

Jo had never liked that mustache. She always thought it looked like it was trying to take over his face. "What can I do for you?"

"Have you heard from Detective Taylor?"

"No sir, but I assume that he will contact us as soon as he can."

"Well, there's something strange about that because I contacted the judge over there in Boulder County to find out if Taylor had filed the extradition request, and the judge says he hasn't even seen Taylor, or heard that there was an extradition."

Jo was dumbfounded. "I don't know what to say," she said as she looked at the file that the commissioner gave her. "I haven't tried to call Mac because he said he would call when he got things in order over there."

"Detective Danville, I'm not saying that Mac is not doing his job. I'm saying that there is something not right. I also called the sheriff's office over there and they said that Detective Taylor has never arrived."

"Never arrived? He should have been there hours ago."

"Well, either someone is lying to me over there or there's something funny going on, and I don't think Detective Taylor is goofing off."

"I'm positive of that."

"I suggest we find out what is going on over there. Let me know what you find out."

The commissioner turned and went back to the elevator. Jo was totally shocked. Danny and Lindsay came to her office. "What's going on?" Danny asked. "What was the commissioner doing here?"

"We have a problem," Jo said. "The Commissioner called over to Boulder County to find out how the extradition is going and there is no record that Mac has ever arrived over there, or that he filed the extradition papers."

Danny and Lindsay were not sure what to say. "What does that mean?" Danny asked. "You think something happened to him? What about Don?"

Jo went into her office and Danny and Lindsay followed. "I know Mac and Don both couldn't be out of whack over there," Jo said. "There must be something wrong if they haven't even filed those papers."

Jo called Mac's cell phone first but she got nothing but the voice mail of course, and she got the same thing with Don's cell phone. She looked at Danny and Lindsay. "There must be something wrong," she said. "They don't answer their phones either." Jo looked in the file that the commissioner had brought and found the number for the sheriff's office in Fleming. She would just talk to those people herself…

The phone rang in the sheriff's office in Fleming, and Talmadge answered, "Sheriff's office."

"Hello, to whom am I speaking?" Jo asked.

"Deputy Talmadge. Who is this?"

"I am Detective Jo Danville from the New York City Crime Lab. I was wondering if you have seen Detective Mac Taylor or Detective Don Flack over there, and if they have filed the extradition papers for one Ian Hubbard."

"No, Ma'am, we have not seen those detectives or heard from them," Talmadge lied. "You're not the first one to call over here asking about them. Like I told that commissioner, they haven't been here."

Jo was silent a moment. "Their plane should have landed this morning," she said. "Why haven't you called and told us that they didn't arrive? You knew they were coming."

"We didn't know what time they were going to arrive."

"I believe that was in the schedule as well."

"I'm sorry, Detective, but they aren't here, and haven't been here."

"Well, thank you for your time. We'll be in touch."

Jo ended that call and looked at Danny and Lindsay. "Something's not right," she said.

"What are we going to do about it?" Danny asked.

"I have to talk to the chief about this but you guys be ready. If we can't find out anything, we may be making a trip over there to find out what happened to Mac and Don."

Mac was herded back into the mine and his ankles were shackled again. "What are you doing to Don!" he demanded.

"Don't worry about him," the guard replied. "You get over there and get to work!"

Mac wanted to fight back but he knew it would do him and Don no good to fight anymore. He would just have to wait until someone in New York realized something was wrong. They would have to realize it…and he hoped Katy would tell someone what was going on here.

Mac started pounding rocks, even though he was hurting all over now, especially his hands and back. He knew they must be torturing Don, and he wished he could get out there to him. He stopped a moment, and wanted to kick himself for ignoring Don on the way back there. He should have talked to him.

"Who told you that you could take a break?" the guard asked. "Get to work!"

Mac got back to work without causing anymore trouble. He knew the others would figure out that there was something wrong, but how long would it take them to know exactly "what" was wrong. He was sure that sheriff knew how to get away with this since these people were here and no one seemed to know about it…except Katy. What did she have to do with this? If she knew about it, there must be other people who did.

Mac worked all afternoon, and he was sweaty and covered with dust, and he had not seen Don since he was brought back to that mine. He was also thirsty, but the guards did not seem to care about that. They only gave them water at certain times and no one got any at any other time. Mac swung that hammer until he thought he could not swing it even one more time. He leaned on the wall and breathed a moment. He coughed from the dust he had been breathing all day.

"You taking another break, Taylor?" one of the guards asked as he walked over there.

"I'm tired!" Mac said.

"Nobody cares if you're tired! Now, get to work!"

"I can't pick up that hammer anymore!"

"You will or you'll pay the consequences."

Mac glared at him. "I want to know where Don Flack is," he said.

"That's not your concern! Now, get to work!"

"It is my concern! Now I want to know where he is!"

"You don't want me to tell Bronson that you're being contrary again, do you?"

Mac thought he would explode if he could but he did not want anymore trouble. He grabbed the hammer handle, and his hands hurt terribly. He thought his hands had blistered on the places where other blisters had popped open. He did not think he was hitting the rocks hard enough to break them anymore. He was not used to this kind of work and he had just about swung that hammer all he could.

Finally, after about another hour, the whistle blew for supper. Mac dropped that hammer and thought he might just collapse. He got into the line going out of the cave, and he still did not see Don. Mac got close to the guy in front of him. "What do they do with people who try to escape?" he whispered.

"You don't want to know," the man replied.

"Just tell me."

"Hey, no talking!" one of the guards yelled. He shoved Mac from behind with the butt of his gun in Mac's back.

Mac stopped and faced the guard. "Where is Don Flack!" he demanded.

"You either get back in that line or you're going to be in even more trouble," the guard warned.

"I want to know where he is!"

"Get in that line, Taylor!"

"Not until you tell me where he is!"

The guard shoved him again using the gun, but Mac grabbed it this time and they were in a struggle. Mac's hands were so sore, he thought he could not hold onto that gun, but he was determined. They struggled over the gun, but Mac found it hard to maneuver with his ankles shackled. However, he was not going to give up easily. If he could get that gun, he might be able to get out of there.

Mac tried to twist the gun out of the guard's hands but the guy was strong, and with his feet chained together, it was hard to get any leverage. The guard had no such difficulty. He shoved Mac backward, and Mac could not keep from going down. His back hit a rock as he hit the floor of the cave, and then the guard was standing over him with the gun. "You're going to pay for that," he said.

The last thing Mac saw was the gun butt coming at his face…


	4. Chapter 4

Jo was in Chief Sinclair's office. "I don't see what we can do short of going over there," Jo said. "Something is wrong here, Chief."

"I agree, Jo," Chief Sinclair replied. "But we don't know exactly what."

"At least let me go over there."

"You're not going alone. I've already lost two detectives over there, and I won't send anyone over there alone."

"So, you're going to let me go?" Jo asked with hopefulness.

"You let me get in touch with the authorities over there and then we'll talk about that. We have to give them a chance."

"Chief, I have not even been able to talk to that sheriff over there that Mac was supposedly going to talk to. All I have talked to were deputies and they always say the sheriff is out and busy. He hasn't called back when he was in the office."

"I understand your concern, and I do realize that is strange but we can't just go barging in over there and take over."

"I don't want to take over. I want to know where Mac and Don are. You know that Mac would have reported in by now, and if he wasn't able to, Don would."

Chief Sinclair leaned on his desk. He had to admit, it was odd that Mac had not called or anything, and he knew Mac Taylor was not slack in his duties. "Alright, Jo, but I want you to go over there quietly, and take someone with you."

"I will," Jo said.

"Maybe more than one. If someone over there is capable of taking down Mac Taylor, it may be a dangerous situation."

"They could have been in an accident before they got to the sheriff's office."

"That's true too but we're still going to be cautious and track their steps from the time they boarded that plane until they got off over there."

Jo considered all that. "The plane had to have arrived because if it didn't, it would be national news, so something happened between the time they got off the plane and…what?"

"That's what you're going to find out. I want you to be careful and don't ruffle too many feathers over there."

"You think Mac ruffled some feathers? You think that's what happened? He suspected something wasn't right and…"

"I don't know, and don't go over there assuming that. Just find out what happened."

Jo nodded. "What if we find out that they…are dead?" she asked.

Sinclair frowned. "Jo, just find out what happened."

"Yes, sir."

Jo left the chief's office and went to the elevator. She knew something bad had to happen for Mac to be out of touch like that. She would think maybe there was a communication breakdown over there if she could not have gotten in touch with anyone over there, but they had. It had to be something else…something bad enough to keep Mac from contacting them.

As Mac woke up, he felt terribly stiff, and then all the soreness came to fore. He felt like the skin on his hands was stretched over them to the point that it might split open if he tried to flex them. And then he felt the pain in his head. That guy had hit him with the butt of that gun, right in the eye. That had really hurt. He opened his…eye. One of his eyes was swollen. He realized there was a cuff on his wrist and it was hooked to the wall…a stone wall. Mac sat up slowly and looked around him although his vision was a little blurred at the moment. Wherever he was, it was very dark, but there was a dim light from a lantern that was sitting on a rock across the room. Mac thought he must be in the cave somewhere, and he was alone. He was not sure how long he had been there but he had been there long enough to get stiff. All his wounds felt stiff and sore, and his back hurt where he had fallen on that rock, and from the beating he endured. He was not feeling well at all. He supposed that was from a little dehydration and being hungry. He had not even gotten to eat his lunch because of that sheriff. He just lay back down on the stone bed he was on. He supposed this was his punishment for trying to fight his way out of the situation again.

Jo, Danny, Sheldon, and Jamie Lovado were on a flight to Colorado. They had not announced their coming to anyone except the FBI, and they had asked them not to let it be known that they were coming over there because of the circumstances. Although there was a chance that Mac and Don were in some sort of accident, it was odd that no one had contacted anyone to let them know what happened. No one had even called to tell them that Mac and Don did not arrive. That was the strange part. Usually in a situation like the one they were in, if someone was not where they should be, someone would call.

Jo had gotten the earliest flight she could to go to Colorado, but they would not arrive until morning. She just hoped Mac and Don were not lying out somewhere dying while they were trying to get there and others out there were ignoring the fact that Mac and Don were very reliable and would not be goofing off on the job, especially Mac Taylor. Jo could hardly believe anyone would think that. She had talked to Russ about the situation, and he certainly knew Mac would not be goofing off. He had told her to let him know if she needed any help and she intended to do just that.

Mac had drifted off again, but he woke up to the sounds of a metallic squeak and groan. He could not help but wonder where he was but he thought maybe he was about to find out. Bronson walked in along with a guard. Mac wished he could sit up and act defiant but he could not. "Well, it looks like we finally have you under control," Bronson said.

"What on earth do you possibly think you can accomplish by doing this?" Mac asked, noticing the hoarseness of his own voice.

"You were just too curious, Taylor. And besides that, you knew something was wrong when you got here. Now, it looks like the whole city of New York is in turmoil because they don't know where you are."

Bronson just stared at Mac a moment. "You must be a pretty important man for everyone to get so up in arms about it," he remarked.

"I told you that you wouldn't get away with this," Mac said.

"Aw, everyone says that…but I guess you meant it."

"Can't I have some water?"

"Well, you can with your meal that will be bread and water for now. I don't think you need more than that while you're lying here doing nothing. We can't have you out there causing more havoc."

"You're not going to get away with it, Bronson. That guy, Hubbard, they're going to want to see him."

"We'll take care of that when the time comes. Don't get up any hopes, Taylor. They'll never find you here."

"You don't know my team. They won't give up until they find me, dead or alive."

Bronson frowned as he looked at Mac. "We'll see."

"Where is Don Flack?"

"You have a lot more to worry about than where your friend is, so I'd get my mind on my own situation."

"I want to know where Don is!"

Bronson turned and went back to the door of the place. "See you later, Taylor."

Mac could do nothing as they left him there in the dark again. He thought this was worse than working in the mine. At least in there he was around other people and was not in total darkness. Nevertheless, he was lying here in the dark alone, chained to a wall, his body stiff and sore, and he thought he probably had a slight concussion too from that lick he took. He looked at the cuff that was holding him. It was one of those wide-banded cuffs attached to a big chain. He could not even inspect his injuries but he could see that his hands were in a pretty bad shape. The blisters had dried up but they were caked with dirt. He could only imagine what the sores from that whipping he took looked like. He flexed his hands but they were very stiff and sore. There was no way to get them clean here where he was. He just wished he knew where Don was.

Don was in total darkness, where he had been for hours since he had been brought back from his attempt at escape. He just had to lie there, unable to turn over off his back or to even sit up. They had put him in some sort of box that was almost like a coffin, but he thought it was not even as deep. He did not know how much longer he could stand it. He had closed his eyes and tried to think of something else besides where he was after he had yelled for a while. He wondered where Mac was too but he had not seen anyone for hours. He supposed this was his punishment for trying to escape. He thought if he ever got out of here, he would behave himself until he could get a better chance. He knew that people would get suspicious when they did not hear from them…they would have to. He had cooperated with Mac because…well, because Mac was his boss, leader, and he always cooperated with him. He knew how disappointed Mac had been when he gave up though, but he thought Mac surely understood why he could not stand there and do nothing when there was a chance that Bronson would blow his brains out. Don thought Mac would have done the same thing…maybe.

Just as Don thought he might try to go to sleep to pass the time, he heard someone unlocking the lock on this contraption he was encased in. They raised the door up, and Don had to close his eyes as even the dim lantern they were holding felt like he was looking at the sun after being in total darkness that long.

They got Don out of the box roughly. His eyes watered and he could not open them yet. "Bring him on," Bronson said.

They took Don out of there and back out into the mine. Bronson shoved Don against the wall. "Now, you listen to me," Bronson said. "You get to work, and don't cause anymore trouble, because if you do, your friend is going to get a few more wounds. Got it?"

Don managed to get his eyes open and looked at Bronson. "Got it," he said.

Bronson shoved Don over to his area to work. Don wiped his eyes as best he could but everything seemed to be covered with dust. He picked up the pickax and glared at Bronson before he took his first swing. Don looked at the wall he was swinging the ax at. He could see that there were small veins of gold in the wall, and quartz as well. He had never actually seen gold in nature like this but he had seen enough westerns and seen enough pictures to know what he was looking at.

At supper, Don looked for Mac, but he was not there, of course. He wondered what they had done with Mac. They must have thought he was a dangerous one to keep there among the others. Don got his tray without saying anything to Katy, but he knew she was looking at him, and he thought she looked concerned. He went over to a table and sat down. "That stunt you and your friend pulled was pretty stupid," the prisoner across the table said quietly.

Don looked at him. "So, what are you in here for?" he asked.

"I'm here because Bronson needed someone to work in his mine."

"Under false arrest?"

"Yeah, but if Bronson wants to claim you're guilty, he can make it stick."

Don frowned. "You know that there are more of you guys than there are of those guards, don't you?"

"I don't see that it helped you any to try and get away. There would have to be a way to get those shackles off."

"I agree, but Mac wanted me to take advantage of that distraction. Besides, he didn't start that fight."

"What is it that Bronson hates so much about your friend?"

"Mac Taylor is the head of the crime lab in New York, a Marine, and a very observant detective. That's what Bronson is afraid of."

"If he's all that, then how did he end up here?"

"We came here to extradite a prisoner. There's just one problem, a crooked sheriff."

"We have all looked for ways to get out of here, but there's no way out. You might as well accept that."

"Bronson's time is limited, and he knows it as well as I do."

"You say that like you really believe it."

"People are going to come looking for Mac and me, and then we'll see who has power."

The man stared at Don as he went on with his eating. "My name's Jarod. Yours is Don?"

"Yeah," Don replied.

"You really think they will come."

Don looked at him. "I 'know' they will."

"Will they get me out of here too?"

"If you're here under false pretenses they will."

"You might give hope to this whole lot. None of these men should be here," Jarod whispered. "Some of them have been here for over a year."

"For what?" Don asked.

"All misdemeanors."

"Misdemeanors? You know the language well."

"I was a deputy until I figured out what was really going on."

"And you were arrested to keep you quiet."

"Yeah."

"What was the charge?"

"Drug possession. He planted drugs in my car, my house, and on me, in my locker. He really had me set up."

Don shook his head. "I think that guy knows how to cover up anything. He'll hide the fact that Mac and I are here, if he can." He looked at Jarod. "If anything happens to us, when people come here from New York, you have to let them know what is going on. They'll listen."

"I'll try," Jarod said.

A guard came over to the table. "You two should be eating, no talking!" he said.

Don just looked down at his plate. He did not want to start up anything else. They had already told him that if he caused anymore trouble that it would be taken out on Mac. He knew they would not hesitate either.

After supper, they worked until sundown and then were taken to the barracks…or Don figured that's what they were called. He was dead tired, but he wanted to know where Mac was. All the doors were locked, and Don knew the guards were away from there for the night. He looked at Jarod who was on the cot beside his. "Where would they be keeping Mac?" Don asked.

Jarod looked at him. "You don't want to know," he said.

"It couldn't be any worse than where I was."

Two other men came over to Don's cot and sat down. "I know where they have him," the first one said. "They have him in the prison in the back of the mine."

"In the mine?"

"Yeah, and there's no shoring over there. If there was a cave-in, he would be trapped over there."

Don sighed. "How far in is it?" he asked.

"Where we work, you keep going until you come to a fork, and you go right. That makeshift prison cell is down there at the end of it. Dark as a dungeon down there."

Don frowned thinking of Mac down there. "They're going to feed him, aren't they?"

"Bread and water if you call that feeding."

"Every meal?"

"I don't know. I haven't been down there, but Chuck here has."

Don looked at the other man who looked like he was in his forties, and he looked like he must have been down there a long time. "What's it like down there?" he asked.

"You can't see anything, hear anything," Chuck said. "It's not a pleasant experience. And on top of that, you're shackled to the wall so you can't even walk around either. You just lie there and do nothing."

Don could not imagine what that would be like for a person like Mac. "We can't let them trap him in there when they find out someone's coming," he said.

"There's nothing we can do," Chuck said. "Bronson has these deputies brainwashed into thinking that he's going to be rich and share it with them, and then he's going to leave the country."

"Is there really much gold in that mine?" Don asked.

"Do you know that this county produced more gold in the gold rush than any other place? You have to guess that there is some more out there, and I guess Bronson has found it."

"I've seen some of it," Jarod said.

Don frowned. "So he thinks he can just keep people here until he gets his gold out? Didn't he think something would happen one of these days?"

"You know, the only reason that the prisoner you were after came to your attention was because they processed him, and that's national record. He didn't know who he had."

"I can imagine that. I just wish I could see Mac, and let him know I'm sorry."

"Sorry for what?"

"I should have kept going."

"What happened?" Chuck asked.

"Bronson knew I was out there, and he threatened to blow Mac's brains out right there unless I came out," Don said. "I couldn't risk that."

"So that's how he got you back."

"Yeah."

"And your friend is probably in pretty bad shape."

"I don't know what all they did to him."

"I can guarantee you that it wasn't anything pleasant."

"We could all get away from here if everyone would cooperate. No one helped Mac," Don said.

The three men looked at Don. "What did you expect us to do with our feet shackled?" Jarod asked.

Don shook his head. "Nothing," he said.

"We wouldn't have gotten any further than you did…unless we killed some of them."

"No, we don't need to get into anything like that unless it comes to them or us."

"It would have been that."

"I guess we should get some rest," Don said. "Tomorrow will be a hard day."

Don lay down on his cot and the others drifted back to theirs. Don wished he could see Mac and know how he was doing, but there was no way to get to him. He was sure there were guards watching the door.

Mac lay there in the dark and silence, not knowing whether it was day or night outside. He had slept quite a bit, and his hands were still stiff and sore and so were the sores on his back. He figured they were going to get infected with all the dirt and everything else that was on them that he could not get off. They had given him two pieces of bread and a cup of water to drink. It curbed his hunger a little but it certainly did not make him feel any better. He had studied the cuff on his arm and the hook that was holding him to the wall but there was no way to get them loose without a tool or something, and he certainly had nothing. He would just have to hope that someone would find him.


	5. Chapter 5

Jo, Danny, Sheldon, and Jamie stepped off the plane the next morning. They got their bags and then headed for the car rental. "Mac and Don would have had to rent a car," Jo said. "If we can find out where they rented a car from, we might know when they left here."

They went over to the car rental store and walked in. There was a man and a woman there at the counter. "Hi," Jo said.

"Hi," the woman replied. "How can we help you?"

"First of all…" Jo showed her her badge. "I'm Detective Jo Danville. I need some information." She showed her a picture of Mac and one of Don. "Have you seen these two men in here?"

"Why yes. They were in here yesterday and rented a car."

"Has that car been returned?"

The woman typed in the computer. "No. It's still out."

Jo paused a moment and looked at the others. "Well, we need to rent a car…or van, then."

Jo rented a van so that they could go over to Fleming. They loaded up in the van and headed for Fleming. "So the car hasn't been returned," Sheldon said. "That means they could have been in an accident."

"Or something else happened and they have not been able to return the car…and if it's the latter, someone else has not returned it either," Jo said.

"Either way, Mac and Don are in trouble," Danny said.

They arrived in Fleming after about thirty minutes. Jo was trying to decide where to go first. She did not think they should go to the sheriff's office first because then they would know they were there and if there was something weird going on, they would get the town under control before they could ask any questions.

"What would they have done when they got here?" Danny asked. "They would have gone to the sheriff's office first. Mac is business first."

"Something must have happened while they were there," Sheldon said.

"So, where would they go next?" Jamie asked.

"They knew they were going to have to stay over night," Jo said. "They would most likely get a room, and they would probably go get something to eat."

Jo drove on through the town and saw that it was definitely a small town, so there was one restaurant that seemed to be pretty popular, judging by all the cars in the lot. Jo pulled in there and they all went inside. There were a few people in there, including one in a deputy uniform. Jo supposed they would have to be careful at this so that they would not cause any trouble…yet.

They got a table and the waitress came over to them. "Hi, I'm Katy," she said. "Would you folks like a menu?"

"Yes," Jo replied. "We've never been here before."

Katy just looked at them all one at a time, and she could not help but notice Danny's accent. "What would you like to drink? I'll get you a menu."

"I'll just have coffee," Jo said.

The others ordered their drinks, and then Katy went behind the counter again. "She knows something," Jo said.

"I agree," Jamie replied. "I guess they don't have many strangers in this town."

"I'm sure they don't have any like me," Danny remarked.

Jamie smiled. "I'm sure they don't."

"How do we get her to share her information with us?" Sheldon asked.

"That's another story," Jo said. "I just hope this breakfast is good."

Danny leaned on the table. "I think we should let someone know that we are here," he said.

"I'm texting the chief now," Jo replied.

The waitress came and brought their coffee to them. Jamie waited until she got back behind the counter. "I think I'll go over there and talk to her," she said.

"Just wait until we have our meals," Jo said. "Then you can talk to her."

They looked at their menus and thought it would be a hard decision to make. "I think I am going to have a full breakfast this morning," Jo said.

"What's a full breakfast?" Danny asked. "I never have time to think about it much."

"Eggs, bacon, sausage, biscuits, grits…they have all of it."

"I might not eat the rest of the day if I ate all that."

"We might not have a chance if everything starts coming apart at the seams around here."

"Good point."

They all ordered a big breakfast and then sat there to wait. "What are we doing after breakfast?" Sheldon asked.

"We'll probably go over to the hotel and see if they checked in there if we don't stir up things too much here," Jo said.

When their breakfasts came, they started eating. Jamie waited a few moments and then went over to the counter where Katy was wiping the counter. "Hi," Jamie said. "Can I get some salt?"

"Sure," Katy replied. She brought a salt shaker to the counter.

"Could I ask you something, Katy?"

Katy looked at her, and Jamie could see her nervousness. "Well, I'm pretty busy," Katy said. "We always have quite a few people for breakfast."

"This won't take long," Jamie said. She showed her a picture of Mac. "Have you seen him?"

Katy looked at the picture. She remembered the last time she had seen him. He had been kind to her and had asked for her help. She swallowed hard and then looked at Jamie. "No, I don't know him," she lied.

"He's my boss, and we think he may be in a lot of trouble. If you know where he is, you need to tell me."

"I don't know where he is and I don't know him."

"I know you're lying. You've seen him, and he was here, wasn't he?"

Katy looked at Jamie, and Jamie thought she saw fear. "I don't know what you're talking about," Katy said.

"Well, at least I know he was here," Jamie replied and went back to the table. She looked at the others. "He's been here."

"What did she say?" Jo asked.

"She lied about it, but I could tell she had seen Mac when she looked at that picture. She probably knows where he is, but I think she's too scared to tell us."

"Scared?" Danny asked. "What would she be scared of?"

Jo looked around that restaurant, and her eyes stopped on the deputy sheriff. He was staring at them now. "I think I'm going to start up a conversation myself," Jo said. She got up and went over to the deputy's table. "Hi," she said. "I'm Jo Danville."

The man stared at her a moment. "I'm Rodney Talmadge," he said. "What brings you folks to Fleming?"

Jo knew he would never guess that she came from New York. "Oh, we're just passing through," she said. "You had any other strangers through here?"

Talmadge frowned. "Why do you ask?"

"Is this a popular spot? I heard you can pan for gold here."

"Oh. Yeah, there are places you can pan for gold."

"I guess you don't get many visitors here. Maybe that will increase our luck. So where can we pan for gold."

Talmadge scowled. "You can go on out of town west and there are two places out there. You can't miss them."

"Thanks."

Jo went back to the table. "What did you say?" Danny asked.

Jo told them what she said. "He was definitely suspicious," she said, quietly.

"But you put his suspicions to rest?"

"Maybe some of them."

"He didn't say anything about seeing any other strangers around here?"

"No. I had to get away from that line of questioning. He would have really gotten suspicious if I had asked anymore. Let's just get done eating and go to the hotel."

When they were done eating, they went over to the only hotel in town. "They would have had to come here," Jo said. "You guys stay here and I'll go in and ask."

Jo got out and went into the hotel office. There was a man at the desk inside. "Hi," Jo said. She showed him her badge. "I need to ask you some questions."

"About what?" the man asked. "You're from New York? I had some people here yesterday from New York."

"Really?" Jo showed him the pictures of Mac and Don. "These men?"

The man looked at them. "Yes. That's them."

"What rooms were they in?"

"One-oh-six and one-oh-seven."

"I need to get into those rooms, please."

"Is that legal?"

"It is right now. I have to know if their things are there. I assume they didn't check out."

"No."

The man looked at the board behind him and got keys to the rooms. "Are they in some sort of trouble?" he asked.

"We think so. Did Detective Taylor tell you why he was here?"

"Detective? No. But I had heard why they were coming. They were coming to extradite a prisoner."

"Didn't you think it was strange that they didn't come back to the hotel?"

"I don't know."

Jo took the keys. "Thanks."

She went out to the car and the others went to the rooms with her. Danny and Jamie went into one and Jo and Sheldon went to the other. Jo found Mac's bag on his bed. She could see that the bed was not slept in. "He was definitely here," she said as Sheldon looked in the bag. "But where is he now?"

"At least we know they made it to town," Sheldon replied. "They're not lying out in a gully somewhere."

"Right."

Danny and Jamie found Don's bag in his room but of course, they could see the room had not been used either. "Looks like he may have laid on the bed," Danny said.

"But not in it," Jamie replied.

"That means, something had to happen before last night."

"Maybe soon after they got here because there is nothing taken out of the bag."

Danny nodded. He and Jamie went over to the other room, and Jo told them that Mac's bag was there too. "So, now we go to that sheriff's office," Jo declared. "After we take some pictures."

Danny got the camera and took pictures of the rooms with the bags in them like they had found them. "Now they can't deny it," he said. He took pictures of the room numbers too.

When that was done, they took Mac's and Don's bags and put them in the van. Jo drove over to the sheriff's office then. They all got out and made sure their badges were showing on their belts. The others followed Jo into the sheriff's office, and found that the same deputy they had seen in the restaurant was there now.

"We meet again," Jo said.

Talmadge frowned as he could see their badges clearly. "Who are you?" he asked.

"I'm Detective Jo Danville. These are my partners. We all work for Mac Taylor. He arrived here yesterday, and we haven't heard from him. He was here to extradite a prisoner."

Talmadge stared at them a moment. "You'll have to talk to the sheriff about that," he said.

"You mean the sheriff conducts business without you knowing it?"

"If you want information, you'll have to talk to him."

"I will. So where is he?"

"He's not here right now."

Jo frowned. "I can see that. How long before he gets back?"

"I don't know."

"You don't know much, do you?"

"You're just like that…"

Jo, Danny, Sheldon, and Jamie all stared at him to hear the rest of that sentence. "Just like what?" Jo asked.

Just then, someone came in the door of the office. Jo and the others turned to see a tall man with hard blue eyes, and thinning hair. He eyed them with suspicious eyes. "Well, we have visitors," he said with a deep voice. He could see their badges easily. "Where are you folks from?"

"I think you already know," Jo said. "We're here about Detective Taylor and Detective Flack. They arrived here in this town to extradite a prisoner."

"They took that prisoner out of here to take him to the courthouse," Bronson said. "We haven't seen him since."

Jo had expected him to say anything but that. "We have not heard from them since they left New York. You're telling me that they were here and took a prisoner from here?"

"I am."

"Wouldn't you wonder what happened to the prisoner if he never returned?"

"I did but they were nowhere in town. We've been huntin' them since then."

Jo could not believe what she was hearing. She had never heard such a made-up story. "We want to know where Detective Taylor and Detective Flack are, and we're not leaving here until we find them," she informed him. "I have already informed the FBI about this situation so whatever's going on here is going to be found out. You can rest assured of that."

"Are you threatening me, Detective?" Bronson asked.

"No, I'm just telling you the truth."

"Southern women. You get right to the point, don't you?"

"You better believe it."

Bronson looked at the others. "You all work for that Detective Taylor, huh?" he asked. He remembered Mac telling him that there would be people who would come after him. He would just have to take some action.

"Yes, we do. We'll see you later."

Jo and the others went outside. "We should have rented more than one car," she said.

"You really think we should split up?" Jamie asked. "I'm more convinced than ever that something is going on here."

"I agree."

They got into the van. "Where to now?" Danny asked.

"You and Jamie are going to get out at the hotel, and you're going to watch this sheriff's station while Sheldon and I go over to the courthouse to find out if the judge knows anything about what that sheriff said."

"What if he leaves the office?" Danny asked.

"Find someone who will let you borrow a car," Jo said.

Jo dropped Danny and Jamie off at the hotel and they went into Mac's room. "You stay here," Jamie said. "I'll ask this hotel guy if we can borrow his car."

Danny sat down to watch out the window. He had a clear view of the sheriff's office from there. No one has come out of the office as of yet.

Jo and Sheldon went over to the courthouse where Judge Freeman was. They went inside and Jo talked to a bailiff and told him that they needed to talk to the judge as soon as possible. "I will get him the message," the bailiff said. "Just wait here."

Jo and Sheldon sat down to wait. "You really think that sheriff was telling the truth?" Sheldon asked.

"Not for a minute," Jo replied. "We have to find out what happened to Mac and Don. He has to know."

"Someone in this town must know."

"I think that waitress at the restaurant knows. We have to figure out a way to get her to talk."

Soon, the bailiff came back to take them to talk to the judge. Judge Freeman was sitting in his chambers when Jo and Sheldon walked in. "Your Honor," Jo said. "I hated to interrupt you in your business but we need to talk to you."

"I understand," Judge Freeman said. "You're here about Detective Taylor."

"And Detective Flack. They're missing."

"I was confused about the situation but Sheriff Bronson told me that they never arrived."

"Well, he's changed his story now and says that they took the prisoner from that jail and they have not seen him since. He said they claimed they were bringing him here."

"That doesn't make sense. I never told them to bring a prisoner here."

"Do you know anything about this sheriff and where he would take prisoners?" Jo asked.

Judge Freeman leaned back in his chair. "He does have a work camp for prisoners," he said. "Some people are sent there."

"What about Hubbard?"

"He shouldn't have been sent there. Bronson knew that he was going to be extradited."

"Where is this work camp?"

"Out on the old mineshaft road. Bronson has a place out there and he takes the prisoners out there to work on it."

"You allow this?" Jo asked.

"He has a permit."

"Do you ever inspect his place to see who's working out there?"

"No, I can't say I do."

"So, he can just do what he wants with no one overseeing it?"

Freeman stared at Jo a moment. "Are you accusing me of something? Or Sheriff Bronson?" he asked.

"No, sir, I am not accusing you of anything," Jo said. "But I know we have two detectives that are missing, and no one knows where they are, but their bags were over at the hotel where they left them, so we know they were in this town."

Judge Freeman scowled at that information. "Their bags were in the hotel?"

"Yes, but their car was not there. We also found out that they rented a car, and it has not been returned, so where are they, and where is that car?"

"I see your point."

"Can you give us a warrant to go to that work camp and search it?" Jo asked.

"You have to have some reason to do that."

"Our boss is missing, and another detective. Their things were left in a hotel, this sheriff claims they were bringing a prisoner over here to the courthouse which you say you never asked them to do. What more do we need?"

"Something that tells us they are possibly there."

"Your Honor, with all due respect, if we wait until something like that can be proven, we may be looking for their bodies."

Judge Freeman could see what Jo meant. He did not like Sheriff Bronson much. He had always thought he had a shady side. "Okay," he said. "I'll give you the warrant but if you go out there, you'll be on your own."

"No we won't," Jo replied. "I'm going to inform the FBI of what we're doing."

When they had the warrant, Jo and Sheldon went back out to the van, and went over to the hotel. They went into Mac's room where Danny and Jamie were. "Has anyone left that office over there?" Jo asked.

"Not through the front door," Danny answered.

Jo looked at Jamie. "I want you to go to that restaurant and talk to Katy," Jo said. "Try to get her to talk to you about what she knows."

"I'm on it," Jamie replied. She went out and left the hotel. She would walk to the restaurant.

"I have a warrant," Jo said. "We can demand to go out there and search that work camp." Jo explained to Danny what she had discussed with the judge.

"You think he's got Mac and Don out there working for him against their will?" he asked.

"I don't know," Jo said. "But we have to find out." She got her phone and called Russ to let him know what was happening.

"You think they're being held captive?" Russ asked. "Why would he think he could get away with something like that?"

"Maybe he's been getting away with this for a long time."

"You're going out there now?"

"Soon."

"You need to be careful when you go out there. Don't go missing yourself."

"I'll contact you when we arrive over there if I can," Jo said.

"You better."


	6. Chapter 6

Jamie went over to the restaurant and went inside. Katy was sitting at the counter reading a book. She looked up when Jamie came in. Jamie could see the apprehensive look that came over Katy's face. "Hi," Katy said, trying to sound cheerful.

"Hi," Jamie replied. She was glad no one was in the restaurant now. "I would like to talk to you."

"About what?"

"About my friends who are missing."

Katy frowned. "I told you I don't know anything about that."

"And I don't believe you."

"What makes you think I know where they are?"

"Because of the way you looked at the picture of Detective Taylor. You saw him in here, didn't you? And maybe you've seen him since then."

Katy frowned. "He was nice to you, wasn't he?" Jamie asked. "I know Detective Taylor. He finds something good in everyone."

"Why are you telling me all this?" Katy asked.

"Because I want you to help me find him. You know where he is, don't you? And Detective Flack too."

"They'll kill me if I talk to you," Katy said.

"No they won't. They're going down just like so many other crooked cops."

Katy sighed and looked out the windows and then looked at Jamie. "You're right," she said. "Detective Taylor is being held prisoner out there at the work camp. I saw him. He asked me to help them, but I didn't know how. I saw him get into a fight with Bronson, and his friend, the other detective, he ran out the back door. I didn't say anything, but they caught him. He was there again."

"What about Detective Taylor?"

"I didn't see him again. He wasn't there when I served the meal again."

Jamie frowned. "Why wouldn't he be there? You said he got in a fight with the sheriff?"

"Yes." Katy looked down. "His feet were shackled. He didn't have much of a chance. They took him outside."

"You need to come with me."

"And do what?"

"We're going to protect you until this is over."

Katy locked up the restaurant and went with Jamie. They went back to Mac's hotel room, and told Jo what was discussed. "Well, that's all we need," Jo said. "We're going out there. Jamie, you stay here with Katy. If we're not back within a reasonable amount of time, you call Russ and let him know it."

"I'll be here," Jamie said.

Jo, Danny, and Sheldon made sure their weapons were ready and loaded, and they went out to the van. Jo called Russ and let him know what they had found out and that they were heading out to that prison camp. "I'm getting some people on the way to that town," Russ said. "Stay in touch."

"I intend to," Jo replied.

Jo ended that call, and they headed out to the prison camp. She could see that the sheriff's car was gone from the office now. She thought maybe he would be out there at the camp now. She drove out on that road which was a dirt road and was beginning to think they went the wrong way but finally, they came to the place. "This is it?" Danny asked.

"Looks like it," Jo said.

There were two cars there, and one of them belonged to the sheriff. "What do you want to bet that he's making sure everything looks normal?" Sheldon asked.

"Nothing about this looks normal," Danny said.

They got out of the van and there were two guards out there. Jo introduced herself and Danny and Sheldon. "I have a warrant here to search this place," she said.

The guards looked at each other. "You'll have to talk to the sheriff about that," one of them said.

Jo was about tired of hearing that. "And just where is he?" she asked. "I see his car there, so where is he?"

"I'll get him," one of the guards said.

"How about we just go with you to find him?"

Jo, Sheldon, and Danny followed the guard into the place. "I have to tell ya, I don't like being inside a locked fence like this," Danny said to Jo.

"Just relax," Jo said. "Keep your eyes and ears open."

The guard finally made his way over to one of the buildings that was set up as an office. The sheriff was in there sitting at a desk. "What are you doing here?" he asked.

Jo showed him the warrant. "We have a warrant to search this place," she said. "We want to know who all you have here."

They could all plainly see the rage on Bronson's face. "You don't have any right to search this place," he said. "This is a prison camp."

"I don't think you're quite so honest as you ought to be so we're going to inspect it."

Bronson had already prepared for such a contingency, so he let them go ahead, but he led them through the camp. "We know that Detective Taylor was here," Jo said. "Now where is he?"

"Are you accusing me of something?" Bronson asked.

"Yes, I am. You're imprisoning two detectives and we want them now."

"We want to have a look in that mine," Danny said.

"That mine belongs to me," Bronson declared. "It's private property."

"If you have prisoners working in there, it's not," Jo said.

"You can see the prisoners working out there in the fields."

Jo knew they had more than this and she intended to find out what…and where Mac and Don were. She went over to the fence and looked at the prisoners working out there in that field. She could not see them clearly from where she was, but she could see that Mac and Don were not out there. "I don't see Hubbard out there," Danny said.

"We know they were here if Katy is telling the truth," Sheldon said. "They must have them hidden."

"But where?"

Jo turned around and looked toward the opening of the mine. "I can't think of a better place than underground," she said. She walked over to Bronson. "I want to see in that mine."

"You won't see in that mine," Bronson declared. "This warrant says the prison camp, not my mine."

"Since that mine is on this property, it is considered part of this prison camp," Danny said. "If you say it's not being used for the prison camp and we find out you've been using prisoners for work in there, you're going to be shut down and going to be looking for a job…or probably be joining some prisoners on a road crew."

Bronson glared at Danny. "We need to interview those prisoners out there," Jo said. "We have to know what they have to say about the situation."

"You're gonna trust prisoners?" Bronson asked with scorn.

"Oh, I think they will be perfectly cooperative."

"Take 'em!" Bronson commanded.

Suddenly, all the guards had guns pointed at Jo, Danny, and Sheldon. They were taken completely by surprise. "Well, I guess I have two more workers," Bronson said. He walked over to Jo. "And a filly to boot. I'm sure I can find something real good for you to do."

"You can't possibly think that you can get away with this!" Jo declared. "You had better give up now while you still have the chance."

"There were four of them this morning," Talmadge said. "The other woman is even prettier than this one."

"Where is she?" Bronson asked.

Jo just glared at him. "Not talking, huh?" Bronson asked. "Well, it can't be too hard to find her in such a small town as Fleming, and I'm sure she's there somewhere."

"You're already outnumbered and you just don't know it," Jo said. "There are plenty of people who know we're here and they're going to come looking for us."

"By that time, you won't be here, and we won't either."

Mac started out of his sleep and looked around him in the dim light of the lantern. He thought the air in there was getting very stuffy, or he was developing some sort of allergy to that dust and dirt. He felt like he could not get his breath good enough and he felt sweaty. He sat up and leaned back against the wall. His head felt terrible, and he knew why they had him locked in there now. They wanted his strength to wane and they would be able to keep him under control. He wondered what they were doing to Don. He had not seen him since he had been put in this place.

Mac sat there thinking that he might die in that place when he heard that loud squeak of the door being opened. He also felt a burst of air come into the place. Two guards came in and unshackled Mac from the wall. They got him up and headed out the door. "Where are we going?" Mac asked. He sure hoped they were not going to beat him anymore.

When they came to the entrance of the mine, the light outside almost blinded Mac. His eyes watered and the light actually hurt. They took him to an old bus, and Mac was shocked to see Jo and the others in there after he could see. Suddenly, he had some strength, and he rammed his elbow into one of the guard's noses, and then he grabbed the other one by the arm and flipped him completely over his shoulder and onto the seats of the bus.

The guard behind them was so surprised that Mac punched him before he could even get his gun up. Mac shoved him out the door of the bus and then jumped in the driver's seat himself. Jo and the others were finishing up the work Mac did on those two guards in the back of the bus. Mac cranked the bus and jerked it into gear. He stomped the gas pedal while Bronson and the others were still trying to wrap their minds around what was happening, and they had to jump out of the way or Mac would have flattened them.

Mac rammed the fence gate with the bus and headed up that dirt road toward the town. Jo got up in the front seat. "It's good to see you!" she said. "Are you alright?"

Mac was not sure he was alright but he was not stopping that bus because Bronson and some of those others were giving pursuit. "I'll make it," Mac replied.

"Jamie is at the hotel with Katy. She finally told us what she knew. We came to rescue you and Don."

"Nice job."

Jo knew that was sarcasm. "They got the jump on us."

"Well, don't feel embarrassed, cause they got the jump on Don and me too."

Just then a shot rang out and it hit the mirror on the driver's side of the bus. Mac also heard glass break in the back of the bus. "We only have these two weapons, Mac!" Jo said.

"Just hang on!" Mac replied.

The road was so rough, they felt like they were riding on a horse wagon because Mac was going as fast as he could to get away from their pursuers. "Hang on!" Mac yelled. He suddenly slammed on the brakes, and one of the cars behind them ran into the back of the bus, and one of them swerved around them and ran into a rock on the side of the road.

Mac stomped the gas pedal then and they were off again. He knew that car that hit the rock would not be going anywhere else but he was not sure about the one that hit the back of the bus. "You're worse than a New York taxi driver!" Don said.

Mac was just glad to hear Don's voice, even if it was sarcasm. "If you think you can do better, get up here, cause my hands are killing me!" Mac replied.

Don went up there. "I'll take it!"

"You would! I'm not going to try to hand this off to you!"

"You said!"

"I know what I said."

"Can we argue some other time?" Jo asked. "Are you going back to town?"

Mac was not sure which way to go. He knew that sheriff had everyone under control in that town and they might betray them. "Do you have your phone?" he asked.

"No! They took everything!"

"No way to contact anyone! What happened to the other prisoners?"

"I think he locked them in the barracks."

"Some of those people are innocent, Mac!" Don said.

"I figured that!"

Suddenly, a small boulder came rolling down the hill in front of them. "Look out!" Jo and Don yelled at the same time.

Mac hit the brakes but he could not avoid the boulder. The bus slammed into it and they were all jolted forward. Mac got his arms up in time to keep from hitting the steering wheel. Jo and Don grabbed the two weapons that they had taken from the guards and jumped off the bus. Don could not run with his feet still shackled, but he hid behind a rock and opened fire at the car that had been chasing them. Sheriff Bronson and the others in the car jumped out and hid behind the car. Mac was down behind the seats of the bus, and so were Sheldon and Danny, but they felt like they were caught in the crossfire. Plenty of bullets were hitting the bus and raining glass down inside it.

The gunfire continued until Don's gun clicked. "Uh oh," he said.

Jo ran out of ammunition not long after that, and they had noticed that there were quite a few less bullets coming from the sheriff and his helpers. Danny got out of the bus and went around to the front of it. He could see the sheriff looking at his gun in frustration, and the others were shaking their heads. Danny went back to the other side of the bus. "I think all of them are out of ammunition," he said quietly.

Mac got out of the bus. He still felt fatigued, but he was ready to get this mess settled. "Give it up, Bronson!" he yelled.

Bronson recognized that voice even though it was a little hoarse. "Not on your life, Taylor!" he replied. "You're out of ammunition!"

"You think so? I know you are! We're not surrendering to you, so you might as well give up!"

"You really think you can win this?"

"Yeah, I do!"

"Why don't you come on out of there, Taylor, and you and I can have it out?"

Mac thought he would like nothing better but he did not think he was in any shape to fight. He did not have a lot of strength after being chained up in that jail with only bread and water to eat. "Don't tell me you're a coward, Taylor!" Bronson yelled.

"I don't know the meaning of that word except when it applies to you!"

Jo rolled her eyes. "How long are you two going to keep this up?" she whispered.

"Until Danny can get to the other end of the bus without being seen," Mac whispered.

Jo had not seen Danny crawling down toward the other end of the bus. Sheldon was now crouched in the doorway of the bus waiting to see what he would have to do. He could definitely see that Mac needed some medical attention.

Mac finally stood up and walked around to the front of the bus. "Come on out, Bronson," he said. "Come out with no weapons."

"Mac, what are you doing?" Don whispered. "You can't fight him."

Mac did not listen to that, but he waited for Bronson to stand up, and he finally did and stared at Mac. "I'm surprised to see you standing, Taylor," he said.

"I've got enough to take care of you, Bronson!" Mac replied.

Bronson stepped away from the car, and came around to the side of the bus. "Anytime you're ready, Taylor," he said.

Mac went around the front of the bus and around to the side. "No cheating," he said.

"None. I don't need to cheat to beat you cause I fight dirty."

"If that's how you want it."

Jo could not believe Mac was going to fight that guy. She, Don, and Sheldon came around the front of the bus to see what was going to happen, and Bronson's deputies were behind him too. Danny had crawled back to the back of the bus so that he could get behind them. No one was paying attention to the fact that Danny was not with the other three.

Now that Mac was standing up, Jo could see the blood stains on his shirt, and Sheldon could certainly see the shape his hands were in. He did not know how Mac thought he could fight someone in that shape.

Bronson and Mac walked closer to each other, each one able to see that there was no fear in the other's eyes. "I think this is going to be a good fight, Taylor," Bronson said.

"If you call a fight good," Mac replied.

"It's come down to this. The loser has to give up."

"Over my dead body will my people give up."

"We won't even do it over that," Jo declared.

Mac smiled slightly at that. Bronson just looked madder than he was before. "Any time you're ready, Taylor."

"You afraid to make the first move?" Mac asked.

Suddenly, Bronson moved to the right, and Mac crouched to get ready for the impact if he tackled him. However, Bronson did not tackle him, but rammed his fist into Mac's left side. Mac grunted, but he rammed his elbow into Bronson's nose since he was in the perfect position. Then he grabbed Bronson's right arm and would have dislocated his elbow, but Bronson came around with his other elbow and split Mac's cheek open. Jo had never seen such a fight as it continued. Blood was gushing and she was sure she heard a bone crack once. Then she saw Danny behind the guards who were also watching the fight. She went back into the bus to see if there was a key on one of the guards in there that she could get the shackles off Don with. She found a key in the pocket of one of the guards who was still out cold and she ran out to Don. She unlocked the shackles on his feet.

"Thanks," Don said. He flexed his legs. "I sure am glad to have those off."

"You're welcome. Now, let's get around to the back of this bus. We're going to take down the rest of those guards."

Jo and Don went around to the back of the bus where Danny was. There were four guards left there since the ones from the other car had gotten in with the sheriff. Sheldon came around behind them, even though he was not a fighter. He would do what he had to do to help.

Mac was locked in the battle with Bronson, and they were on the ground making a tremendous amount of dust. Mac knew it would take him longer to wear Bronson down because he had not been deprived of food and water, but he had caused him some pain…on the other hand, Bronson had caused him plenty of pain too. However, they were two determined men and were not likely to give up until one of them was lying still on the ground.

Mac slammed his forearm into the side of Bronson's neck, and knocked him to the ground as he was trying to get up. Then Mac got up and kicked Bronson in the face. He did not like fighting dirty like that but he did not have much choice in this matter. Then he realized his team was in a fight of their own. They were taking on the guards.

Mac finally got the best of Bronson and hit him the final time. Bronson hit the ground and stayed there. Mac stumbled a little as he looked to see if he was going to get up again. He finally just sat down flat on the ground. He was exhausted.

Jo and the others got over to Mac. "You alright?" Jo asked.

Mac nodded. "Just tired," he said. "I'm sure glad that's over. We have to go back and get those other prisoners out of there."

"Don't worry. We'll do that."

Mac grunted as they got him up. Sheldon looked at Mac's bloody hands and face. Sheldon shook his head. "You're sure a stubborn, determined man," he said.

"I have to be," Mac replied.

They all looked at the bus and the sheriff's car. "I don't think either one of these is going to move," Jo said.

Mac looked down the road toward town. "I guess we're walking," he said. "Get the keys they have so we can release those prisoners when we get back there."

Danny searched the sheriff and the deputies and got all the keys they had on them, and then they all started walking. "I sure could use some water right now," Don said. "Cold, with ice in it."

"Will you shut up?" the other four said together.

Mac was surprised by that. "Well, I guess that was unanimous," Don said.

Mac felt a little dizzy, and he wanted some water for sure, but he did not want to hear about it. He was not sure how far it was to town but it was not a short walk. "I'll be glad when I get back to New York," Jo said. "I like the country but I want to be back in the city."

"You're not the only one," Danny replied.

"Come on, guys, I walked further than this when I was training in the Marines," Mac said.

"Yeah, but you had water, right?" Don asked.

"There you go with the water again," Danny said.

"Do you guys realize what just happened back there?" Mac asked. "I think we could do without the complaining. Just think about the fact that it's almost over."

"After what you've been through, I guess you think this is a vacation," Sheldon said.

Mac considered that. "I wouldn't go that far, but it sure is better than being chained to a wall in the dark."

They walked on and the sun seemed to be beating down even worse, but Mac figured it was just because they were thinking about it. He was starting to think everything looked hazy too. "Mac, you alright?" Sheldon asked.

Mac looked at him, and he knew Sheldon could tell he was not well. "I'll make it," he said. One of his eyes was still a little swollen and more of his face was now too since that last fight he had. He thought he had not fought this much since he was in the Marines. Not to mention that he was limping slightly from that punch in the groin and his right knee. He had to admit, that Bronson gave him a worthy opponent.

They walked for over an hour, and then Mac had to sit down. Don did not feel much better. He sat down beside Mac. Sheldon looked at Mac's wounds on his face and then he looked at his hands and back. "These look infected," Sheldon said.

Mac grimaced as Sheldon inspected his hands. Sheldon knew they had to be painful. "I'll take care of this when we get back to town," he said.

Mac closed his eyes. "I'm just tired."

"Jamie should be getting suspicious by now," Jo said. "Maybe they will be coming soon."

"They?"

"The FBI."

"Oh."

Mac took a deep breath. "Let's get moving," he said. He got up and grunted as he had almost sat there until he felt stiff. They started walking again, and after a few more minutes, Mac thought he heard a siren.

"Did you hear that?" Jo asked.

"Yes." Mac cleared his throat. He was still hoarse and felt like coughing but he had not coughed yet.

Finally, they heard the sirens even better, and two cars came into view, as well as an ambulance, and another car. Mac just sat down on the side of the road. He would not walk any further if they were coming to get him. Sheldon squatted beside him. "I'm alright," Mac said. "I'm just tired." Mac thought his strength and stamina had been really tested, but he was still breathing so he supposed it was alright.


	7. Chapter 7

Mac sat in the back of the ambulance and tried to explain to the FBI, the state police, and Chief Sinclair on the phone what happened while paramedics were putting an IV in his arm and checking his blood pressure, temperature and everything. Sheldon was cleaning the wounds on his hands while he talked into the Bluetooth. "Ow!" Mac said as the medicine stung the blisters on his hands.

"Sorry," Sheldon said. "But this is really bad. You're going to have to go to a hospital to get this cleaned."

"I realize that."

Don was lying on a stretcher. He felt like he had not slept since he had been here. "He's a stubborn old goat," he said. "If he wasn't, we probably wouldn't have gotten out of there alive."

"Oh sure," Mac replied, sarcastically. "If I hadn't gotten into all those fights, we might have made it better."

"I should have helped you."

"I'm just glad the two of you are okay," Jo put in. "When we didn't hear from you all that time, we knew something was wrong because we knew Mac would not be goofing off on the job."

Jo waited to see Don's reaction to that. He sat up on the stretcher. "Hey," he said. "I resent that. I don't goof off on the job."

Jo laughed. "I figured that would get a reaction from him."

They got Mac onto a stretcher too after he admitted that he would have to go to the hospital. He thought he would sleep if there was not a detective, an FBI agent, and Chief Sinclair all talking to him and wanting his story. "I thought there was something strange when I got here and that sheriff wasn't even at his office," Mac declared. "He knew we were coming. Then after we ate lunch, we went back there and he didn't even have the prisoner there, but out at that work camp. I should have known better. It was just a lot of stupid mistakes that led to all this, and I don't know where Ian Hubbard is now. I didn't see him at that prison camp when we were put into that mine."

"You think they killed him thinking they could get away with that?" Sinclair asked.

Mac considered that a moment. "I don't know but I wouldn't put it past them," he said. "I'm sure he would have killed me if we had not stirred up their party. He knew his time was running out and he was trying to clean up his act before you guys got here."

"There was no way he could have gotten away with that," Sinclair said. "It's strange to me that he thought he could explain what happened to all of you."

"I don't know where he was taking us," Mac said.

"So, they put you on a bus," Detective Tidwell said. "You didn't have any indication of where they were about to take you?"

"No," Mac replied. He shook his head. "They just came in there and got me, and when I saw…" Mac blew out a breath. "I just kinda lost it when I saw the others there. I don't think we would have made any round trips. I think he knew exactly where to take us so that we would never have been found."

Detective Tidwell thought on that a moment. "You think he's got a place where he threw out bodies?" he asked.

"There's a lot of mountains and valleys out there," Mac said. "I would think that he knows that area very well and he knew exactly where he was taking us."

Tidwell shook his head. "I think we will have a hard time figuring out where that is."

"I do too, unless you can get one of those deputies to talk." Mac shook his head. "I don't see how he could have corrupted all of them."

"They weren't really deputies," the FBI agent said. "They were just thugs that he had hired and deputized. They had no training or anything like that."

"There was one man in that prison who was a deputy before," Don said. "He was framed and put in there after he learned what was going on."

"What was his name?"

"Jarod. That's all I know."

Don closed his eyes. He felt better since they were giving him that IV of fluids and he had drank some water. He had blisters on his hands too and he would be glad when he got something done about it.

When they arrived at the hospital, Mac was glad to get away from the call with Sinclair and all those questions. He was ready to have something for all that pain in his hands and back. However, when the nurses stuck his hands in the solution to soak them, he wanted to yell. It burned like fire at first but then it just became soothing. After that, his hands looked like all the skin would peel off the palms, and they were completely raw. The nurses wrapped his hands in bandages and cared for his wounds on his back, and some on his sides too, not to mention his face.

By the time they were done with him, Mac thought he smelled completely like disinfectant. He was put into a hospital room to stay overnight. He was slightly dehydrated and even had a mild concussion, but perhaps the worst was the bronchitis he was developing from being in that dust. Mac thought he had always been susceptible to dust. Now he would be coughing for a while. Once bronchitis got started, it did not stop until it ran its course.

Don had a little lung irritation as well, and blisters on his hands, but he had no concussion since he had not been in any fights. He lay there in the hospital bed wondering what Mac thought about him now. He thought Mac had been very disappointed in him while they were over there at that camp. He would have to have a discussion with Mac after they were out of the hospital. He had heard that the other prisoners were found, but that Ian Hubbard was not there. Katy had told them all she knew, and Don thought she might be in a little trouble for helping that along. However, she was cooperating so she might get off.

The next morning when Mac woke up, Jo was there. She folded her arms. "It's about time you woke up," she said.

Mac took a deep breath but that made him cough. "What time is it?" he asked sleepily.

"Oh, it's about seven-thirty."

"Seven-thirty? That's not late."

"I know, but you were just lying there sleeping like a baby. I was surprised that you could sleep like that the way you are in New York."

Mac rolled his eyes, but that even hurt since one of his eyes was still sore, and bandaged now. "What do you want, Jo?" he asked.

"They're still looking for Ian Hubbard," Jo said.

"Nowhere to be found, huh? Have they asked some of the other prisoners if they know where he might be kept?"

"They don't know where they took him. Do you know that half those prisoners there were innocent? They were forced to work at that prison camp, and their families were threatened to keep quiet."

"I thought it was something like that. What about Bronson?"

"He's in jail now, and he's not cooperating at all."

"How did he get to be sheriff here?"

"Believe it or not, he used to be an honest man. He was an upstanding citizen and very respected by the community."

"Well, what happened?"

"His wife was murdered, and the murderer got off because of some technicality, and the jury was of this town, you know."

Mac frowned. "And that caused him to go off the deep end?"

Jo nodded. "That's what I understand from talking around town to people."

"Why didn't anyone say anything?"

"They were afraid. From what I gathered, there have been some strange disappearances around this place, and some of them were those jury members who cleared that murderer."

"Wow. What a tangled mess. Has anybody talked to him?"

"The FBI have, that Detective Tidwell. He wouldn't talk to them." Jo smiled. "You know, that Detective Tidwell is pretty sexy."

Mac looked at her a little surprised by that remark. "What?"

"He's pretty sexy. I think I'm going to ask him out."

"You're kidding."

"No. I'm not kidding."

"What if he doesn't find that he thinks you're so sexy?" Mac asked.

"Oh, well, I've been rejected before."

Mac thought about Bronson. "I'm going to talk to Bronson when I get out of here," he said. "Maybe I can get him to come clean."

"You? After the fight you two had?"

Mac shrugged. "It was just a fight between two old military bulls."

Jo stared at him a moment. "And you don't hold any grudges at all? It was just a good old fight?"

"Yeah."

"Oh my word. I have heard it all now. You must be the last of a breed. I thought that went out long ago."

Mac smiled. "Nothing has gone out. I haven't had any reason to fight somebody. It kinda felt good."

Jo almost gasped. "Good!? Mac Taylor, I thought you were a level headed, intelligent man until I heard that."

Mac almost laughed. "Relax, Jo. I wouldn't have fought him if I hadn't had to."

"Makes you feel like you're still a man, huh?"

Mac did laugh a little then. "Maybe."

Jo could not believe what she was hearing. She was not sure if Mac was just pulling her leg or if he meant it. It did not sound like the Mac Taylor she knew. She wondered what Bronson thought about that fight. Did he think it was just a "good old fight"? She did not think he did.

Mac got out of the hospital that afternoon, and was given instructions on soaking his hands. They would have to stay wrapped for a while. Mac could tell his hands were still very raw and even felt stiff some of the time but they certainly did not feel as bad as before.

"Take me to see Bronson," Mac said to Jo.

"Now?" Jo asked. "You just got out of the hospital."

"I don't care. I want to talk to him."

"Oh, Mac, you're one of a kind. You think you two are kindred spirits?"

"No."

Jo heard that flat answer so she did not go on with that suggestion. She drove over to the jail where Bronson was being held. Detective Tidwell was there when they walked in. "I want to talk to Bronson," Mac said.

"I don't think he wants to talk to anyone," Tidwell replied.

"I want to see him anyway."

Soon, Bronson was in an interrogation room and chained to the chair he was sitting in. He frowned when Mac walked in. "Mac Taylor," he said.

Mac sat down at the table across from Bronson. "Isaac Bronson."

Bronson stared at Mac a moment. "What do you want?" he asked. He was sporting a piece of tape on his nose where Mac had broken it, and he also had a bandage on his face, and a bandage around one of his arms.

"You were once an honest sheriff," Mac said.

"What's it to you?"

"I heard what happened."

"Hmmm. And you think you're going to come in here and play on my sympathy?"

"You must have loved your wife a lot."

Bronson's frown deepened. "I did."

"I can understand that. I loved my wife more than anything in this world."

"I read up on you, Taylor. I know what happened to your wife."

"I know what happened to yours too."

"Then you should know why I decided that it wasn't worth it. If I couldn't bring justice to her, why should I care about anyone else's justice?"

Mac frowned. He wondered how many times he had felt like that, but he had pushed those thoughts aside because it was not the people he was working with who killed his wife. "I know how you feel," he said.

"Do you?" Bronson asked. "You think you're going to get me to tell you where Hubbard is? That murderer. Why do you care where he is?"

"Because, he's a human being and…"

"No! He's an animal!"

"I came to get him so he could go back and face the charges against him. If you don't tell me where he is, you will be just as guilty of murder as he is."

Bronson leaned toward Mac. "I'm taking the law into my own hands," he said. "How would I know whether you would let him get away with those crimes or not?"

Mac stared at Bronson in the eyes. "Because you know what kind of cop I am."

They just stared at each other a moment. "Yeah, you're one of the good ones," Bronson said. "Honest, hard-working, but no one appreciates it."

"Yes they do," Mac replied. "And there are people in New York right now who want justice for their loved ones who were murdered by this guy."

"You can tell them that he won't ever murder anyone else."

"Bronson! Tell me where he is!"

Bronson leaned back in his chair. "We had a pretty good fight out there, Taylor," he said. "I wouldn't mind tangling with you again." He held up his hands with the cuffs on them. "But I guess that won't happen."

"I guess not."

"No hard feelings, you know."

Mac knew Jo must be getting a kick out of this because he knew she was listening. "None," Mac said. "Tell me where he is."

Bronson just stared at Mac. "You promise you're not going to let him get away with those murders."

"I promise," Mac said. "I have all the evidence stacked against him."

"Yeah, you're one of those scientists."

"I am."

"You always get your man, huh?"

"Most of the time."

"Alright, Taylor. I'll tell you where he is. I think your word's as good as written in stone."

Jo could not believe what she was hearing. She did think they were the last of a dying breed. She did not think she could fight like that with someone and then just act like it was a friendly competition.

Soon, Mac came from the interrogation room with directions to where Ian Hubbard was imprisoned. "I don't believe what I just heard," Jo said.

Mac looked at her. "Well, you just don't understand us," he replied.

They were soon on their way out to the place where Hubbard was being held. "If he's dead, Bronson will be charged with murder," Tidwell said as he was driving.

"I know that," Mac replied. "I don't think he's dead though. If Bronson had been aiming to kill anyone, I think he would have killed me."

"Because you threatened his operation," Jo said. "You know that, but yet you can sit in that interrogation room and talk like friends?"

"Relax, Jo. It's over now."

They found Hubbard where Bronson had said he was. He was alive but he was not in good shape. He was definitely dehydrated and deprived of food but other than that, he was not harmed except he had been beaten.

Three days later, Mac and Don stood in the airport waiting for their light back to New York. "For a while there, I thought we would never be on our way back home," Don said.

Mac brushed some dust off the tail of his shirt. He had retrieved his clothes from that prison camp…after all, it was his favorite shirt. "I guess I thought that a few times myself," he replied. "I thought I would die in that dungeon."

"I didn't know if you were dead or alive for a day or two, and I felt like it was all my fault."

Mac looked at him. "Your fault? Why would it be your fault?"

"I gave up. I should have just stayed where I was."

Mac shook his head. "Stop thinking like that. It's over now."

"I know you were mad at me."

Mac nodded. "I was, but I realized that I couldn't have stayed quiet thinking that they were going to kill you either. I'm sorry."

"You're really apologizing to me?"

Mac scowled. "Yeah. Something wrong with that?"

"No, but I just thought you would be mad at me for a long time."

"I'm not mad at you, and I realized that I was expecting you to do something that I couldn't have done myself, so I'm sorry."

"Alright. I guess I deserve that."

"Deserve what?"

"An apology."

"Why don't you stop talking?"

"Hey, I didn't expect you to apologize. I thought you would just chew me out."

"Chew you out for what?"

"You know what, for being untrustworthy."

"I never said you untrustworthy."

Just then, their flight was announced. Mac headed toward the gate. "Did you think I betrayed you?" Don asked.

Mac sighed. "Are you going to keep talking about this?" he asked. "I told you I was sorry, and it's over."

Don frowned. "Well, I just wanted to know how you really felt about it."

"Okay, Don. Yeah, I felt betrayed. I went through all that pain and everything to get you out of there and then you just gave up."

"I knew that's how you really felt."

"But I don't feel that way now. I told you, I realized that was selfish of me to think that."

"What if I had not given in, and then he had shot you? How do you think I would have felt about that?"

"Don, get on the plane before I want to throw you off it."

Don smiled as he walked on ahead of Mac to get on the plane. He knew Mac would not have stood there and let Bronson count down…but he also knew that Bronson might not have shot Mac either. He supposed they would never know now, but at least they were getting that murderer back to New York to face charges. Don thought they had taken the long route for that, but they succeeded after all.


End file.
